NEW ORLEANS – First Baptist Church here will never be the same, says its pastor, David Crosby. NEW ORLEANS – First Baptist Church here will never be the same, says its pastor, David Crosby. The congregation has been turned around by the ministry needs it’s encountered over the last 12 months, Crosby said. It’s a transformation that started with the church leadership, and came to full focus in the aftermath of Katrina keelhauling the city. “We were having our best attendance in many years,” said Crosby, pastor since 1996. “We were reaping the benefits of our recent relocation. Sunday school attendance was over 700; worship was about 900; we had baptized about 80 people since moving in 2004, which was very good for us. “But what God was doing in my heart was calling me to a new engagement in the community,” Crosby continued. “I felt like the church – not only my church but lots of churches – were not fully connected to their community, that often we were mighty in word but not in deed. I wanted to see my church mighty in deed.” Crosby preached a series on “Mighty In Deed” during the summer of 2005 and launched the Baptist Crossroads project that he’d envisioned a year before: building 40 homes in partnership with Habitat for … [Read more...]

NEW ORLEANS--The people in the New Orleans area know that it is one thing to have insurance and quite another thing to have an insurance check. The pastors and laity who are dealing with insurance issues for their churches are expressing a range of emotions from blessed to stressed. NEW ORLEANS--The people in the New Orleans area know that it is one thing to have insurance and quite another thing to have an insurance check. The pastors and laity who are dealing with insurance issues for their churches are expressing a range of emotions from blessed to stressed. The congregations having the most difficulty are the ones caught in a battle with their insurers over the percentage of wind versus floodwater damage to the buildings. “We had a hard time getting [the insurance company] to talk to us. They wouldn’t return our calls,” said James Melerine, pastor of Delacroix Hope. “We had one guy tell us ... we still had our roof and studs. I asked him, which church are you looking at?” Because the church was so close to the water, the congregation built it 14 feet high. The hurricane left only the cinderblock columns that supported the structure. The church was able to settle with their insurance company for 80 percent of the … [Read more...]

NEW ORLEANS--The people in the New Orleans area know that it is one thing to have insurance and quite another thing to have an insurance check. The pastors and laity who are dealing with insurance issues for their churches are expressing a range of emotions from blessed to stressed. NEW ORLEANS--The people in the New Orleans area know that it is one thing to have insurance and quite another thing to have an insurance check. The pastors and laity who are dealing with insurance issues for their churches are expressing a range of emotions from blessed to stressed. The congregations having the most difficulty are the ones caught in a battle with their insurers over the percentage of wind versus floodwater damage to the buildings. “We had a hard time getting [the insurance company] to talk to us. They wouldn’t return our calls,” said James Melerine, pastor of Delacroix Hope. “We had one guy tell us ... we still had our roof and studs. I asked him, which church are you looking at?” Because the church was so close to the water, the congregation built it 14 feet high. The hurricane left only the cinderblock columns that supported the structure. The church was able to settle with their insurance company for 80 percent of the … [Read more...]

The volunteers working on these projects and others need inexpensive lodging, and Tobey Pittman has the $20/night answer: Volunteer Village. NEW ORLEANS – Hundreds of volunteers arrive each month to help Southern Baptists’ multiple recovery operations here. Baptist Crossroads is the largest residential  construction project in the city. Already 30 homes have been completed; 10  more are under construction and 160 are on the books to follow by 2008. Project NOAH Rebuild’s goal is 1,000 homes and 20 churches to be rebuilt within two years, and they’re gutting hundreds of homes. First Baptist New Orleans wants to gut 1,000 homes by the end of the year. Many other churches in Greater New Orleans are in rebuild mode, and in helping restore the people and neighborhoods around their churches. The volunteers working on these projects and others need inexpensive lodging, and Tobey Pittman has the answer: Volunteer Village. This is three floors in the downtown World Trade Center, a block from the French Quarter. Originally designed to house construction workers, Pittman – longtime director of the Brantley homeless shelter – bought the contents, which includes an industrial-sized kitchen – and made a deal with the … [Read more...]

SLIDELL – Post-Katrina, half its members moved away, putting the church in an even more precarious financial position. But, said Jerry Smith, associate pastor in charge of disaster relief at Grace, “One of the big things God has taught us is that whenever we’re faithful to serve, He is faithful to provide and bless.” SLIDELL—Despite having about 600 in regular attendance, Grace Memorial Baptist Church, one of seven Southern Baptist churches in Slidell, was almost $150,000 behind budget when Katrina struck. Afterwards, half its members moved away, putting the church in an even more precarious financial position.  But, said Jerry Smith, associate pastor in charge of disaster relief at Grace, “One of the big things God has taught us is that whenever we’re faithful to serve, He is faithful to provide and bless.” God gave them an opportunity to serve, despite their own struggles, and Grace Memorial accepted the challenge. Now, Grace is about $20,000 above budget. “Had we not been faithful in opening our doors and serving others as God gave us opportunity, we likely would have missed the blessing of financial resources and other blessings too,” said Bob Heustess, senior pastor. Having lost only their steeple and minor roof … [Read more...]

SLIDELL – A year after its 17,000 square foot, leased building was demolished by Katrina, Northshore Baptist Church continues to “impact the North Shore of New Orleans by reaching the unchurched and leading them to become disciples of Christ,” said Larry McEwen, senior pastor. SLIDELL – A year after its 17,000 square foot, leased building was demolished by Katrina, Northshore Baptist Church continues to “impact the North Shore of New Orleans by reaching the unchurched and leading them to become disciples of Christ,” said Larry McEwen, senior pastor. And they plan on continuing to connect “disconnected people with Christ through worship, small groups, and missions,”  despite the fact that they have no building of their own, McEwen said. The “walls were blown out by the storm surge.  The floor in the worship center buckled over a foot. The water level in the building settled to 5 1/2 feet,” and the sound equipment, the computers, and the pastor’s library were all destroyed, said McEwen of the building that had housed Northshore pre-Katrina. The $100,000 they had invested in the building was lost. The week after the storm, 82 people, all that was left of a congregation that had hit 398 the Sunday before Katrina struck, … [Read more...]

When Keith Manuel attended a Christmas program planning session on Friday, Aug. 26, 2005, little did he know how his life was about to change. By Jake Roudkovski Special to the Message NEW ORLEANS – When Keith Manuel attended a Christmas program planning session on Friday, Aug. 26, 2005, little did he know how his life was about to change. His first clue that challenging weather was ahead came came as he left the planning meeting. He noticed long lines at gas stations. The next day, Keith and his family became evacuees themselves. Their story was typical of many that fled the path of Hurricane Katrina. Initially the Mauuels stayed with strangers in Florida and Georgia. A week later they relocated to his mother’s home in Ocean Springs, Miss., when power was restored to her house. Although the city of New Orleans was closed to the public, Manuel secured a pass as a chaplain to enter the city. “The family wants a priest, but you will do,” a hospital official told him at West Jefferson Hospital. Pre-Katrina, about 370 people attended Sunday morning worship at Calvary. Post-Katrina, the adult education, youth building and office space were unusable, but the worship center sustained minimal damage. It was cleaned up by … [Read more...]

KENNER – Even before Hurricane Katrina made landfall, local and out-of-town law enforcement personnel were gathering at Troop B to be the first responders to what would be called the worst national disaster in United States history. KENNER – Even before Hurricane Katrina made landfall, local and out-of-town law enforcement personnel were gathering at Troop B to be the first responders to what would be called the worst national disaster in United States history. Across the street, members from Williams Boulevard Baptist Church were preparing to host the troopers. By Aug. 31, members of Williams Boulevard Baptist began feeding state troopers, city police and other law enforcement officers from throughout the nation. Designated as an ex-officio command center by the Louisiana State Police, the church offered use of its building for housing, showers and three meals a day through Nov. 24. While Troop B Captain Kenneth Curlee could not provide exact statistics, he said that hundreds of troopers were fed each day. “Volunteers from the church worked round the clock,” Curlee explained. “They were the ones who kept us going.” Deacon William Frame said though some of the members were busy repairing their homes, they scheduled … [Read more...]

NEW ORLEANS – It was the day after Hurricane Katrina had devastated his city and Inman Houston was having trouble communicating with fellow staff and members at First Baptist Church of New Orleans. NEW ORLEANS – It was the day after Hurricane Katrina had devastated his city and Inman Houston was having trouble communicating with fellow staff and members at First Baptist Church of New Orleans. Since the city’s phone lines were down, Houston had only one way to contact members of his church – First Baptist’s web site. Besides prayer, it would be the glue that held the church together in the weeks following the storm. “That immediate loss of connecting with other church members and staff was a feeling of uncertainity,” explained Houston, associate pastor of community ministry and single adults. “It was hard to find out what happened to my good friends; I didn’t know if they were alive and well or dead. “There was such a desire and craving to learn of their whereabouts,” he continued. “Even though we weren’t able to physically be together at our building in New Orleans, our website helped our church stay in contact with one another.” In the days following Katrina, church members utilized First Baptist’s message … [Read more...]

NEW ORLEANS – Being raised in church by wonderful Christian parents didn’t assure Tim Agee a place in heaven. NEW ORLEANS – Being raised in church by wonderful Christian parents didn’t assure Tim Agee a place in heaven. Tim did all the church things: regular attendance, baptism, youth trips. Yet he still didn’t have a relationship with Jesus Christ. At sixteen, his family moved to Panama City, Florida. When he went to college, Tim quit going to church. Eventually he would meet and marry his wife, Kirsten. She was not a believer either. The two ended up settling in Tim’s hometown of Pine Hill, Ala. They would pop in on church a time or two but were never regular. Kirsten was the first to start attending church a little more often, but Tim always had something else to do. It was during a lay-revival that Kirsten gave her life to Jesus Christ. The church Kirsten attended, Pine Hill Baptist, became involved in construction missions. She knew immediately she wanted to go. Tim listened with interest because even though he was in the timber industry, framing was what he loved. “She talked about it so much that it got me to thinking about going,” he said. He loved the work, but hated the devotions and church … [Read more...]