News

LANDLOCKED NO MORE!

Historic Cocke County church moves from downtown location NEWPORT — A new era began Oct. 16 at First Baptist Church, Newport. After 67 years at its previous location in downtown Newport, the church moved to its new facility on 10 acres of land on the outskirts of the city, overlooking the mountains.  The move culminated a 15-year process, said pastor Rich Lloyd who has served at First Baptist Church for

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SUMMIT 2022: OFF TO A POWERFUL START

CORDOVA — The Tennessee Baptist’s Convention’s annual Summit meeting opened on Sunday night with a blend of praise, prayer and power at Bellevue Baptist Church, Cordova. The night included two worship gatherings  — the All Nations Worship Service (see story HERE) and the annual Sunday night “Tennessee Reunion” service — held at different locations on the Bellevue campus.  Evangelist Bob Pittman, who has preached over 1,000 revival meetings and Bible

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GAME PLAN CHANGES

Former NFL quarterback answers call, prepares to move to Kenya  FRANKLIN — Rusty Smith has spent most of his life on the football field. Now, he’s headed to a different field: The mission field.  Smith, a former NFL quarterback who played with the Tennessee Titans and New York Giants, will leave next summer with his family to begin serving a two-year commitment in Kijabe, Kenya, as part of the Africa

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CONTROL OF CONGRESS STILL UNDECIDED AFTER ELECTIONS

WASHINGTON — Control of the next Congress remained uncertain by early afternoon Wednesday (Nov. 9), a day after the 2022 mid-term elections. Republicans seemed near to gaining the majority in the House of Representatives, while it appeared a December runoff might be required to determine which party controls the Senate. In the House, the GOP led the Democrats 204-176 in seats won as of 1:45 p.m. CST Wednesday, according to

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PRO-LIFE EFFORTS ON BALLOT INITIATIVES FAIL IN AT LEAST 4 STATES

NASHVILLE — Pro-life advocates appeared poised to suffer across-the-board losses on five state ballot initiatives voted on Nov. 8 in the first nationwide election since the reversal of the Roe v. Wade decision. The failure to gain passage of a pro-life measure in Kentucky or to defeat constitutional amendments that guarantee abortion rights in California, Michigan and Vermont dealt a troubling setback to Southern Baptists and other Americans who welcomed

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RELIGIOUS FREEDOM DISMISSED IN NEVADA, ARKANSAS; LEGAL MARIJUANA RESULTS VARY

CARSON CITY, Nev. — Voters in Nevada and Arkansas took steps deemed contrary to and problematic for religious freedom in Nov. 8 midterm elections, while legalized marijuana passed in two of the five states that considered it. Nevada voters added gender identity and sexual orientation to freedoms protected in the state constitution with 57.11 percent of voters approving the Equality of Rights Amendment, Nevada Secretary of State Barbara Cegavske reported.

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TBC-HPBC PARTNERSHIP OFFERS OPPORTUNITIES

FRANKLIN — Being on mission is an adventure and every opportunity is unique. However, Tennessee Baptists can engage one of the more unique partnership missions opportunities the Tennessee Baptist Convention has ever endeavored.  Aloha, Hawaii! Messengers of the 2021 Summit, held at Brentwood Baptist Church, Brentwood, affirmed a partnership missions agreement between the Tennessee Baptist Convention and the Hawaii Pacific Baptist Convention (HPBC).  The partnership began this year and some

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HAWAII: LAND OF (GOSPEL) OPPORTUNITY

WAIKIKI, Hawaii — Hawaii is almost certainly not what you think. Go ahead, give it a try. Close your eyes and picutre it. Chances are, right now in your mind, you are probably seeing hula dancers adorned in colorful flowery leis and swishing grass skirts.  Or possibly you see lush green islands, hidden waterfalls and large waves crashing over volcanic rock reefs before rolling gently onto pristine beaches.  And surely

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TBC CP GIFTS END YEAR NEAR GOAL

FRANKLIN — Tennessee Baptist Convention churches gave $2,678,899 through the Cooperative Program in October. For the 2021-22 fiscal year, which ended Oct. 31, Tennessee Baptists gave $34,791,766. The amount is $122,693 or  0.4 percent below the amount given at the same time last year. The year-end total is $208,234 or 0.59 percent below the budget goal of $35 million.

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CHURCHES ARE OPEN BUT STILL RECOVERING FROM PANDEMIC ATTENDANCE LOSSES

NASHVILLE — Almost every church in the U.S. is holding in-person services again, but some pre-pandemic churchgoers still haven’t returned. In August 2022, 100 percent of U.S. Protestant pastors (rounded to the nearest whole number) say their churches met in person, according to a Lifeway Research study. This continues the increases from the past two years of churches holding physical gatherings. In August 2021, 98 percent of churches gathered in

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LANDLOCKED NO MORE!

Historic Cocke County church moves from downtown location NEWPORT — A new era began Oct. 16 at First Baptist Church, Newport. After 67 years at

Read More »

GAME PLAN CHANGES

Former NFL quarterback answers call, prepares to move to Kenya  FRANKLIN — Rusty Smith has spent most of his life on the football field. Now,

Read More »

TBC CP GIFTS END YEAR NEAR GOAL

FRANKLIN — Tennessee Baptist Convention churches gave $2,678,899 through the Cooperative Program in October. For the 2021-22 fiscal year, which ended Oct. 31, Tennessee Baptists

Read More »