LEADERS Dean Haun, pastor of First Baptist Church, Morristown, will lead an Encounter Israel Pastors Solidarity Tour Sept. 16-25. The trip is under the auspices of the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem and will include tour host John Vedder. The trip is designed to help pastors and ministry leaders deepen their understanding of Israel’s prophetic restoration in the context of 4,000 years of biblical history. Tour participants will engage with local

LEADERS Michael Martin will begin serving as pastor of Meridian Baptist Church, Knoxville, on June 1.  He previously served as senior pastor of Seventh Street Baptist Church in Cullman, Ala., where he served as senior pastor for 10 years. Martin received his master of divinity from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Louisville, Ky., and his undergraduate degree from Union University in Jackson. He was licensed to the ministry in March 1998

CHURCHES Meridian Baptist Church on 6513 Chapman Highway in Knoxville will be celebrating its 150th anniversary on Sunday, April 28, with a special service. Former pastors will be recognized and leading special events starting at 9:30 a.m. with worship at 10:45 a.m., followed by a pot luck lunch afterward. A special history room has been created in the library and pictures decorate our hallways of times gone by. The theme

LEADERS Union University has named Ray Van Neste, dean of its School of Theology and Missions, as vice president for university ministries. Van Neste will continue to serve as dean in addition to his new role, where he will oversee Union’s chapel program, church relations and pastoral care for the university community. Van Neste has served on the Union faculty since 2001 and became dean of the School of Theology

CHURCHES Bethany Baptist Church, Mountain City, will hold revival services April 21-27 with guest evangelist Ted Richardson. The Sunday revival will begin at 11 a.m. with services each night at 7 p.m. Gayle Hartley is pastor. Chinquapin Grove Baptist Church, Bluff City, will hold revival services April 1-2 at 7 p.m. with guest evangelist Kenny Baldwin. Jamie Ferguson is pastor. DEATHS Billy Junior Haney of Cookeville died Feb. 26 at

ASSOCIATIONS Twenty-nine volunteers from Weakley County Baptist Association churches spent Jan. 27-Feb. 2 serving in Puerto Rico. Half of the team worked at a church in the middle of the city of Fajardo (with a population of 25,000) doing various construction jobs while the other half worked in the island city of Vieques (with a population of 8,200). That team worked on a local church, a future Christian camp and

LEADERS Darrell Nimmo, a retired Tennessee Baptist pastor living in Goodlettsville, will write the Bible Studies for Life commentary for the March-May quarter. In addition to Tennessee he has served churches in Kentucky and Texas. He graduated from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and he has been married to his wife Mary for 46 years. Mary has served on staff with the TBMB for 33 years at the Baptist and Reflector.

[full_width]Rebecca George, author, speaker and the host of the popular podcast “Radical Radiance,” recently has written Do the Thing: Gospel-Centered Goals, Gumption and Grace for the Go-Getter Girl. She is the wife of Dustin George, lead pastor of Vonore Baptist Church, Vonore. Her gospel-rooted book is written to empower female entrepreneurs and leaders to discover and live out their calling. The book is available from amazon.com.[/full_width] [full_width]Members of the Tennessee

Beulah Baptist Church, Kingsport, recently held a recognition service for its first ever VBS Directors Traineeship graduates. The program was initiated by longtime VBS director Betty Cress, now assistant VBS director for 2024, who felt the need to train young adults for VBS leadership in the church. Cress developed a manual with input from others, including Vicki Hulsey, childhood specialist for the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board. The five graduates of

LEADERS Joey Johnson recently celebrated his 10th anniversary as pastor of First Baptist Church, Selmer. Duck River Baptist Association has called Genaro Orellana as its new Hispanic missionary. Orellana also serves as pastor of Iglesia Gracia which meets at Grace Baptist Church in Tullahoma. Michael Kelley, executive director of Nashville Baptist Association, has announced his resignation in mid-January to become director of The Rooted Network, a discipleship and publishing organization