By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer MONROE, La. (LBM) – God’s solution to deal with anxiety that may develop from the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a mindset of thanksgiving rather than anxiety and worry, according to Louisiana Baptist Children’s Home and Family Ministries Granberry Counseling Director Kathy Eichelberger. “I tell my clients worry and anxiety cannot co-exist with thanksgiving,” Eichelberger told the Baptist Message. “One will weigh over another. This is like a prescription God has given us to deal with the anxiety. “Practicing Philippians 4 will help us focus on the things we are truly thankful for, and I encourage my clients to meditate on verses 5-9,” she continued. “Writing that scripture on index cards to be placed throughout your office or home is a great reminder that will give you a peace of mind.” Like many counselors, Eichelberger and her Granberry colleagues have received an influx of questions on how to cope with the impact from COVID-19. Despite the stresses on households resulting from the lifestyle changes mandated by the statewide lockdown, Eichelberger reminds those seeking answers not to focus on the unknown. “We know life is uncertain and this is a scary time,” … [Read more...]
Pray for awakening!
By Stewart Holloway How long has it been? That question is rather open ended, isn’t it? It begs a follow up question - Since what? These days we’re developing a long list of things we haven’t done in a while. How long has it been since we gathered for worship, went to a ballgame, ate at our favorite restaurant, went to class, had friends over, went in to work . . . . The long “been” creates a longing in our hearts for our favorite things but also many of the normal and mundane things of life. This question has been on my mind, creating another longing, however. I’ve been asking, “How long has it been since we saw an awakening in America?” Of course, I know the answer. While I didn’t have a course on leading your church through a world-wide pandemic in seminary, I did have an engaging doctoral seminar on spiritual awakenings. The last awakening that spread across all of America was also the first and only global awakening. It occurred over a century ago now, which means no one living today experienced it. This is the only era in America’s existence that there aren’t people alive who experienced a great awakening. On one hand, that is sad because it means no one can tell us first hand about the experience. We … [Read more...]
Parkview combines tech, tradition to elect new pastor
By Message Staff BATON ROUGE, La. (LBM) –Parkview Baptist Church overcame extreme logistical obstacles created by the coronavirus crisis, and voted overwhelmingly, March 22, to elect Chris DeGeorge as their new pastor, and he has accepted. The Baton Rouge congregation had to replace a traditional "meet and greet" with a virtual one when the governor issued successive orders restricting gatherings to no more than 250, then 50 and now 10 people. And instead of postponing the vote, church leaders took a step of faith, using measures to ensure the integrity of the process and moved ahead with balloting via text messages, phone calls and the drop off of paper "yays" and "nays." When the tally of all the different inputs was completed, members had voted DeGeorge as their new pastor, by a 98 percent margin. DeGeorge will begin his ministry in the state capital, May 1, after serving for three years as the pastor of Calvary Baptist Church in Tupelo, Mississippi. BY ALL MEANS POSSIBLE “It worked well with the interaction he had with people online during the weekend,” Associate Pastor of Worship and Creative Arts Chris Turner told the Baptist Message. “Lots of people said they appreciated the opportunity and got a good bit … [Read more...]
Governor Edwards calls for day of prayer and fasting on Tuesdays
By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer BATON ROUGE, La. (LBM) – Governor John Bel Edwards, state legislators, other government leaders and pastors have asked Louisianans to devote the noontime hour over the next four Tuesdays to focused prayer and fasting for God’s intervention in the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) situation. “Lunch Fasting Before God on Tuesdays” will begin Tuesday, March 31, and end Tuesday, April 21. “I want to encourage all Louisiana Baptists to join the Governor and many of our legislators in fasting on Tuesdays at lunch,” Louisiana Baptists Executive Director Steve Horn told the Baptist Message. “In fact, what I really want to say is ‘Unless you are medically restricted from fasting, I cannot see why you would not want to participate.’ “We are beginning to see this virus invade the lives of those we know and we are certainly starting to feel the effects of the economic implications of this pandemic,” he continued. “Let us pray with desperation and expectation. Most of all, let us pray that a long-awaited spiritual awakening is the result.” Edwards, who is a devoted Catholic, previously called on others to join him during a Louisiana Public Broadcasting town hall meeting March … [Read more...]
Louisiana College launches Center for Online Innovation and Development
By Norm Miller, LCNews PINEVILLE, La. (LCNews) -- Utilizing a $2.2 million Title III grant from the U.S. Department of Education, Louisiana College launched the Center for Online Innovation and Development (COID) as it moves to 100 percent online classes for remote learning on March 30. Expanding online learning is an integral part of Louisiana College’s strategic plan, but the coronavirus put the effort on fast-forward. “Facing COVID-19 restrictions and an unprecedented federal mandate, we had to adapt quickly to move classes to remote, 100 percent online access,” said Dr. Stacey Duke, who joined LC’s staff and faculty in February as Title III Activity Director, Distance Learning Coordinator, and Associate Professor of Business. Jason Mercer joined LC in January as Instructional Designer for Distance Learning. Duke and Mercer marshaled web-based assets to create digital tutorials, resources, and community pages, where faculty can share ideas and readily communicate with each other and their students, thus further equipping faculty to teach in the online format. “With the move from face-to-face classes to remote access, we provided immediate tools and training for faculty, as well as helped administrators develop … [Read more...]
Louisiana joins five other states in lockdowns
By Will Hall, Message Executive Editor BATON Rouge, La. (LBM)—Louisiana has joined California, Delaware, Illinois, New York and Ohio in taking the drastic step of locking down their respective populations. Connecticut, Oregon and Pennsylvania are considering similar measures. Gov. John Bel Edwards issued a stay-at-home order, March 22, directing the state’s 4.6 million citizens to shelter at home and limit movements from there for essential needs only, effective through April 12. In a news conference, he said he reached his decision based on data from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette showing Louisiana only behind New York and Washington State in per capita cases of coronavirus infections. He also shared a graph indicating a steep growth trajectory in confirmed cases matching rates of infection in Italy and Spain, the two global hot zones for the Coronavirus Disease 2019 outbreak. To date, Louisiana has 837 confirmed cases, including 20 deaths, with 36 of 64 parishes affected, although the most affected region of the state is the New Orleans metro area. The practical effect of the measure mandates the closure of indoor and outdoor entertainment venues, personal care and grooming businesses, and malls … [Read more...]
Louisiana Baptists donate 24,000 N95 masks
By Message Staff NEW ORLEANS, La. (LBM) – Louisiana Baptists have donated 10,000 N95 respirators to help Ochsner Medical Center in New Orleans, and another 14,000 or so to other medical centers around the state to help fight against the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). John Hebert, Louisiana Baptists missions and ministry team director, told the Baptist Message he was honored to put to use now these disaster relief materials donated to help Louisiana Baptists respond after floods, hurricanes and other natural and manmade disasters. The N95 respirators are used by Louisiana Baptist volunteers to help in high dust operations like removing dried mud in clean up operations and during different phases of reconstruction such as drywall sanding, etc. The respirators are in short supply among healthcare centers since the COVID-19 pandemic and President Trump issued a personal plea for construction companies and other organizations to donate what they could to hospitals facing shortages while manufacturers sped up the supply lines. An Ochsner delivery truck picked up the respirators and delivered them to their facilities on Wednesday, March 18. “We are doing everything we know to do to help stop the spread of COVID-19 … [Read more...]
COACH ORGERON: ‘God had His Spirit upon this team’
By Will Hall, Message Executive Editor BATON ROUGE, La. (LBM)–Speaking, March 10, to the audience gathered for the 2020 Governor’s Prayer Breakfast in the Crowne Plaza Executive Center in Baton Rouge, Louisiana State University Football Coach Ed Orgeron emphasized spiritual character as a defining quality of his daily coaching approach and as a key trait of his championship football team. DAILY PRAYER “Here’s how I start my morning, every day,” Orgeron offered. “When I get to work -- at 6 o’clock that truck’s going to be in the parking lot – I’m going to say my prayers; sit by myself; and, get my mind ready for the day, because I know something’s going to happen and I’m going to be ready for it. “But I get outside – I don’t know if you’ve been to our complex, but I’ve got a beautiful patio,” he said, offering the description: “you see the bridge; you see the stadium; you see the football field.” “And here’s my prayer,” he shared. “God, thank you for letting me be the head football coach of Louisiana State University. Please give me the words and the wisdom that you want me to use to lead this team, today. In Jesus’s name we pray, amen.” Orgeron also scored some laughter, adding that he also offers thanks “for … [Read more...]
PRAYER BREAKFAST: ‘Live like you’re dying’
By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer BATON ROUGE, La. (LBM) – Prior to the start of the second day of the 2020 Louisiana Legislative Session, U.S. Senate Chaplain Barry Black urged elected officials to live each day like it could be their last. “I’m living on borrowed time, and I resolve never to do anything I would be afraid to be doing if I knew it were the last hour of my life,” Black said during his keynote address at the 56th annual Louisiana Governor’s Prayer Breakfast. “In other words, I am going to live like I am dying.” LIFE AND DEATH Black told lawmakers and others gathered inside the Crowne Plaza Executive Center in Baton Rouge that no one is promised tomorrow and that they should realize life is brief, uncertain and ultimately about eternity. He explained his perspective in terms of a life and death experience that took place when he was a U.S. Navy chaplain. Black said he had been consoling a sailor to whom he had broken the tragic news via a Red Cross message regarding seven family members who had died after their car stalled on a railroad track. The helicopter which was transporting Black among the various ships in the destroyer squadron was hovering above the vessel unable to land because … [Read more...]
Thrift store provides ‘helping hand’ to pregnancy center
By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer ALEXANDRIA, La. (LBM) – Helping Hands Thrift Store in Pineville has donated a portion of its proceeds from the sale of its facility to the CENLA Pregnancy Center in Alexandria. Representatives of both organizations gathered at the pregnancy center office in Alexandria on March 11 to celebrate the unspecified gift that will help further the pro-life cause. Although both parties preferred humbleness, over announcing the actual amount, both conceded it was a sizeable contribution. In that regard, CENLA Pregnancy Center Director Claire Lemoine said the generous gift will help expand services in such areas as: pregnancy decision coaching by trained advocates; pregnancy testing; ultrasound imaging; counseling about pregnancy options; distributing maternity and physical resources; and, providing post-decision support (parenting education and abortion recovery group classes). “We are incredibly grateful to Mr. Ray Powell and the board of directors of Helping Hands for a timely gift to us,” Lemoine told the Baptist Message. “God has provided for our needs and continues to provide for the future needs of the center.” Ray Powell, director of Helping Hands -- who attends both the First … [Read more...]
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