Life is tough. Even those who put their faith and trust in Jesus have it hard. But the difference between them and those who thought they had to do everything themselves is that the people called “Christians” know they aren’t all alone in this. They have Jesus to reach out to, cry with, yell at, lean on, be comforted by, be loved by and reach out to, with love. Who is this Jesus? He is God as well as the physical manifestation of God. That’s why the warmth of God’s love shines through Him, and the strength of God’s power emanates from Him. The Bible says Jesus went through everything mankind does, and yet he never sinned, he never fell short of God’s expectation. You know you can’t say that. God knows that too. That’s why He sent Jesus – to pay the price for your sins, because that’s the only way you one day can be with Him in heaven. He had to send Jesus, because Jesus was the only one powerful enough to conquer death. That’s how much God loves you: He loves you so much that he let Jesus be whipped, ridiculed and hung on a cross to die a very public, excruciatingly painful death so that you one day can be with Him in heaven. It’s time for you to apologize to God for the wrongs you’ve done, to ask Jesus to guide … [Read more...]

Have you ever felt overwhelmed by choices? You go into McDonalds or Burger King knowing exactly what you want, until you see the menu. Then, you decide you want something else. When it comes to eternity, the choices are much simpler. Either you can choose to admit to God that you are sinful, rebellious, evil, and without merit or strength before Him, or you can ignore and reject God and spend eternity apart from God and heaven in a place called Hell. Simple enough. What does the Bible say? That God loves you so much He sent His son, Jesus, to pay the price for everything you ever have done wrong, or ever will do wrong! See the New Testament book of Romans 5:8. That by trusting that Jesus died on the cross for you and asking Him to forgive you of your sin – Romans 3:23; 5:8; 6:23 – you can confess that Jesus is Lord and Boss of the universe, that all will answer to Him and that you are willing now to submit to Him as your Boss. Or, ignore and reject God and spend eternity apart from God and heaven in a place called Hell. Give yourself one last chance to make the right choice for you: Romans 4:8. … [Read more...]

By Sarah Sutton, Message Summer Staff Writer MONROE – For the past year and a half the women of First Baptist Monroe have been working to promote something in their church they felt was seriously lacking– connection. The Women’s Missions Ministry began in mid 2008, thanks to Sandy Miller, coordinator. In January 2008 Sandy Miller and her husband Pastor Alan had been at FBC for a little over a year and a half.  It was then, she said, that God gave her a vision for a women’s ministry. After discussing her desire for a new ministry with her husband and other members of the church, Miller decided on “connection” for the ministry’s theme. As the world becomes more technologically advanced, with text messaging and email, people need personal connections, Miller said. This Women’s Missions Ministry connects women with each other, and with Jesus. In May 2008, the ministry held its first event, “Friendships in Bloom.” Around 20 women were involved designing graphics, helping with publicity and decorating for the event. A few even made goody bags for the Friday night fellowship. The preparation paid off, Miller said. Over 130 women, young and old, attended to mingle and get to know each other. It was the start of many … [Read more...]

By Sarah Sutton, Message Summer Staff Writer SHREVEPORT – Luke Lee began making short films in high school as a fun, on the side hobby.  He said he never planned on making it a career. Lee works full time as Media Associate, overseeing the video portion of the media ministry, at Brookwood Baptist Church in Shreveport.  However, the 22-year-old filmmaker started producing videos for the church long before he was listed on the payroll. In his junior year of high school, Lee finally felt confident enough to produce videos with his friend, Chris Lyon, who introduced him to the idea of filming in eighth grade. The video director at the time, Bruce Hennigan, and Pastor Mark Sutton would come to them with ideas or requests. There were no obligations, Lee said, and it was very “free form.” He thought it was over once he graduated and left for Louisiana Tech. Lee went to Tech to major in Graphic Design, not planning on making filmmaking anything more than a hobby.  He said it was over Thanksgiving break he realized exactly what opportunities in film were available. “The number of people needed for media is outrageous,” Lee said. “From the time I was in eighth grade to very recently, that opportunity opened … [Read more...]

By Sarah Sutton, Summer Staff Writer SHREVEPORT – Brookwood Baptist Church in Shreveport is making massive changes in order to further advance their ministry to the people inside and outside of the church. With the extreme growth Brookwood experienced over the last few years, the church decided that their current facilities were no longer equipped to handle the changing needs. Once Brookwood assessed these new needs, they created a plan to modify the available spaces, creating the project “Renovate.” Brookwood currently has between 1,300 and 1,500 attendees of the three weekend services, not counting preschool or children, and the numbers are still growing. “We are adding a church wide family service by creating a kid/family friendly worship space for 300 people, upgrading our audio and visual in our worship services, and additional gathering space for adults including a new coffee shop with a unique mission emphasis,” Associate Pastor of Worship Mike Smith said. The proceeds from the coffee shop will go to Thousand Hills Coffee, a ministry to the Twa, utsi and Hutu ethnic groups in Rwanda. When presenting “Renovate” to the church, Pastor Mark Sutton stressed the importance of the family worship … [Read more...]