DICKSON — Maple Grove Missionary Baptist Church has stood the test of time through nearly 150 years of American history. Founded in 1875 in the Sylvia area outside Charlotte (Tenn.), the church took root during Ulysses S. Grant’s presidency, the same year the Civil Rights Act was signed and Alexander Graham Bell made breakthroughs in sound transmission. It was also the year that produced beloved hymns like Fanny Crosby’s “To

MURFREESBORO — The words of “How Great Thou Art” rose to the rafters of Powell’s Chapel Baptist Church on a hot Sunday morning as about 200 congregants celebrated a milestone 150 years in the making on July 27. Women fanned themselves, children squirmed in wooden pews, and men shook hands as the small church overflowed with members marking the sesquicentennial of their beloved congregation. “It is such a blessing to

JACKSON — Jeff Palmer, director of community outreach for Madison-Chester & Crockett (MCC) Baptist Association understands the need to be the hands and feet of Jesus. One of his responsibilities is to work with churches to minister to the community, “It’s a way to tell others about Jesus, to pray for their needs, and show the love of Christ to all people,” says Palmer. Jesus tells us in Mark 12:30-31,

JACKSON — Union University’s School of Theology and Missions and the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board will host the fourth annual EQUIP Youth Apologetics Conference Sept. 6 in Union’s Carl Grant Events Center. With key speakers trained in theology, philosophy, apologetics and youth ministry, the EQUIP Youth Apologetics Conference is intended to help students think more carefully about the Christian faith, to strengthen their own faith and to share that faith

Pastor’s 314-mile walk raises nearly $25K for TBCH UNION CITY — The July sun was scorching in Manchester, radiating up from the open road. But Brad Boucher was 200 miles into a race he was determined to finish. After climbing up Monteagle near Sewanee, he felt the hardest part of the race was behind him. His feet had developed blisters and he was feeling sleep-deprived, but the verse from 1

COOKEVILLE — Three years ago, during a regular meeting at Stevens Street Baptist Church in Cookeville, pastor Scott Parkinson tapped Jesse Haywood on the shoulder and asked, “Hey, do you want to plant a church?” It was a joke — with a twinge of sincerity. “But I just could not shake that thought,” Haywood said. Previously, Haywood had served as a youth minister in Louisville, Ky., where he attended seminary.

Missions event for teen girls, grades 6-12, set for September MURFREESBORO — For Kim Cruse, the path to becoming a missionary began in high school at an event she now organizes. “That’s where God called me to be a missionary,” recalls Cruse, missions discipleship specialist for Tennessee Woman’s Missionary Union. “I learned that the call to take the gospel to the nations was not for the super spiritual only …