The first steps of a 15-year plan were taken at the Louisiana Baptist Convention building April 12. ALEXANDRIA – The first steps of a 15-year plan were taken at the Louisiana Baptist Convention building April 12. The LBC-elected History Committee strategized the development of its next project, which is to focus on gathering stories from the 2005 hurricanes that pummeled the southern half of the state, and that involved the northern half of the state in relief efforts. “We are building a file to publish a book about the Katrina/Rita experience while it’s still fresh on peoples’ minds,” said Chairman Diane “Pinkie” Reeder, a member at Westlake Baptist, Shreveport. “This is one of the most important events in Louisiana Baptist history – how our cities were hit and how we [Southern Baptists] responded – and we need to record it now.” LBC Executive Director David Hankins would like to see a book that would include the catastrophic events and the relief efforts that followed, published in conjunction with the state convention’s 175th anniversary, which is to be in 2022, Reeder said. “There were so many victories, so many salvations,” said Leon Terrell, a committee member and pastor at Calvary Baptist in … [Read more...]
Gambling business stinks
I am in the gambling business. I don’t like it, and I want to stop. I am in the gambling business. I don’t like it, and I want to stop. But I am a citizen of Louisiana . My state is reaping a financial windfall from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Some of the FEMA checks and insurance money that were given to help our citizens recover are pouring into the state treasury by way of our state-sponsored gambling business. As a citizen of this state, I am prospering in some measure because 200,000 of my fellow citizens have a serious problem with gambling. And I am profiting because the gambling addiction is even more pronounced in the wake of the storms. The fact that Louisiana encourages and sponsors this predatory business makes me sad. I’d rather we paid for state government in some other way. State-sponsored gambling is a regressive tax that funds government largely through the broken dreams and financial distress of our poorest citizens. As citizens of The Bayou State, we promote the financial ruin of vulnerable individuals in times of crisis with alluring television advertisements that promise big rewards for gambling. Most of us know, including the gamblers, that the odds of attaining wealth through … [Read more...]
East Bayou to host leadership event
Being both a servant and a leader seem to contradict each other. LAFAYETTE – Being both a servant and a leader seem to contradict each other. But the Servant Leader is exactly what Jim Hunter is teaching to professionals around the world. Hunter will hold a Servant Leadership Workshop Friday May 4 from 8:30 - 11:30 a.m. at East BayouBaptist Church located at 2234 Kaliste Saloom RoadinLafayette. “When we talk about servant leadership, Jim is the expert on that,” event coordinator Brad Price said. “He is similar to John Maxwell, maybe just not as well known.” Price said the event is designed to reach those in the “marketplace, those people that are in positions to lead others including Presidents of companies, CEO’s, Managers, Supervisors, Teachers, Coaches, Parents - virtually anyone in a leadership position. Power versus authority, is one of the areas that Hunter will discuss according to Price. “It is relationship and character based,” he explained, “it is based on patience, kindness, humility, respect, forgiveness, honesty, selflessness and commitment.” Hunter has authored two books on the subject including The Servant, subtitled A Simple Story About the True Essence of Leadership with more than 1.8 … [Read more...]
Checking out Louisiana
Much as I love visiting all the wonderful churches in Louisiana, there is even more to see and do in this great state. LONG LEAF – Much as I love visiting all the wonderful churches in Louisiana, there is even more to see and do in this great state. One of the neatest places might be less than an hour south of Alexandria, just off Hwy. 165. It’s the Southern Forest Heritage Museum, and it’s even more spectacular than usual this next Saturday – April 21 – with Heritage Day at Long Leaf. This is where the timber industry began in the 1890s in Louisiana. A water-powered circle saw started up in 1896, and the company-owned town of Long Leaf grew up around it. The mill ceased operation Feb. 14, 1969, and everything basically is still as it was then. The museum opened in 1996. It’s like walking into your childhood. Posters, pictures, artifacts and information that brings history and memories to life – and that’s just inside what used to be the commissary. On the rest of the museum’s 57 acres is a treasure-trove of machinery that men will remember their dads using. The mill, of course, is still standing, with all its saws and equipment. The belt-and-shaft-driven machine shop, built in 1915, still works – that was too … [Read more...]
The real problem facing the SBC
I recently read the book Letters to a Christian Nation by Sam Harris. It is an evangelistic masterpiece. Harris has invested years of his life preparing to write this book. But Harris is an atheist and one of the leading “evangelistic atheists” of our day. I recently read the book Letters to a Christian Nation by Sam Harris. It is an evangelistic masterpiece. Harris has invested years of his life preparing to write this book. He is so passionate about sharing his faith with others that he took the time to write a defense of his beliefs and publishing it for the whole world to read. Letters to a Christian Nation is a national best-seller. Within its pages, Harris is bold. He realizes that everyone is open to talk about faith these days, and while most of us stay silent, he speaks loudly and clearly about his faith, which he says is intellectually defensible and exclusive. Isn’t this wonderful? Well, not really. You see, the faith that Sam Harris is presenting in his book is actually no faith at all. Harris is an atheist and one of the leading “evangelistic atheists” of our day. Harris is passionately committed to leading everyone he can to believe that they have no eternal purpose. According to him there … [Read more...]
Pornography, grandparents and the ACLU
f children are indeed the future of this country, then the nation’s highest court will soon decide how much protection our future deserves. If children are indeed the future of this country, then the nation’s highest court will soon decide how much protection our future deserves. After a disturbing decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit, the Supreme Court has agreed to review next term whether a child pornography law -- the PROTECT Act of 2003 -- is unconstitutionally overbroad or vague. The 11th Circuit put the future of our children in jeopardy when it reversed the conviction of child pornographer Michael Williams. The court said, “Non-commercial, non-inciteful promotion of illegal child pornography, even if repugnant, is protected speech under the First Amendment.” In essence, the court expressed trepidation that the PROTECT Act would criminalize the pandering of material as “child pornography” when in fact it did not meet the legal definition of that term. But it’s a classic case of throwing the baby out with the bathwater. As an example, the court expressed concern that a “proud and computer savvy grandparent” might be subject to prosecution under the PROTECT Act, simply for … [Read more...]
Seek help before it is needed
Tom Brokaw, former anchorman for NBC Nightly News, wrote a book about “the greatest generation” in which he detailed the lives of those who lived through the great depression and endured World Wars I and II. Most people of that generation take pride in being independent and helping others, yet they do not easily accept help for themselves. Tom Brokaw, former anchorman for NBC Nightly News, wrote a book about “the greatest generation” in which he detailed the lives of those who lived through the great depression and endured World Wars I and II. Most people of that generation take pride in being independent and helping others, yet they do not easily accept help for themselves. They don’t stop to think about how it steals a blessing from those offering help. The Bible gives us many examples of God’s people asking for or accepting help from others. In Exodus 17, Moses accepted help from Aaron & Hur to keep his arms “lifted up to the throne of the Lord,” when the Israelites won a great victory in battle over the Amalekites. In Exodus 18, Moses accepted the advice of his father-in-law, Jethro, and appointed leaders to help decide the minor disputes of the people. As a result, the people were better served and … [Read more...]
Kingdom work gets done in ‘paradise’
Morehouse Baptist Association, which occupies the parish by the same name just south of the Arkansas border is home to 26 Southern Baptist churches and almost 30,000 people. MOREHOUSE ASSOCIATION – Morehouse Baptist Association, which occupies the parish by the same name just south of the Arkansas border is home to 26 Southern Baptist churches and almost 30,000 people. A mixture of woods and urban areas, the area is definitely a sportsman’s paradise, said Associational Missionary – the name Morehouse Association gives its Director of Missions – Jerry Price. For instance, Chemin-A-Haute State Park on Bayou Bartholomew offers 503 acres of wooded, secluded camping areas, while BigSloughLake attracts anglers and bird watchers as well as those who just want to relax and take in the fantastic views from the new cabins built along the lake. The 2,228 acre Bussey Brake Reservoir, owned by International Paper Co., offers some of the best bass and white perch fishing in the state. Wham Brake, also owned by the International Paper Co., is open to the public for duck hunting. In downtown Bastrop, the parish seat that is also a Louisiana Main Street city – part of the state’s historic preservation program – … [Read more...]
Morehouse Baptist Association breaks new ground in evangelistic outreach
The 26 churches in this association don’t allow size to be an obstacle when it comes to taking the gospel to their communities. MOREHOUSE ASSOCIATION – The 26 churches in this association don’t allow size to be an obstacle when it comes to taking the gospel to their communities. With permission from LifeWay Christian Resources, which markets the product, to use its FAITH Sunday School Evangelism Strategy on an associational level rather than the church level as it was designed, the association has seen lives changed. FAITH – an evangelistic pneumonic device much like “the ABC’s of salvation” – stands for Forgiveness; Available – as in, forgiveness is available to all--; Impossible – it is impossible for God to allow sin into heaven; Turn – repent; and Heaven. The strategy involves teams of three in a 16-week class – called a semester – that provides classroom instruction on evangelism and regular opportunity, through planned visitation, to put that knowledge to use. “One advanatage to doing it association-wide is that you have more people involved, which creates more excitement,” said Marty Black, pastor at Bonita RoadBaptist Church in Bastrop and an organizer for the FAITH Evangelism semesters for the … [Read more...]
Ministry requires dexterity
Erry Price, Associational Missionary – same as Director of Missions – for the Morehouse Association, has been known to lift up the Lord’s Supper, but not in the way you might expect. WEST MONROE – Jerry Price, Associational Missionary – same as Director of Missions – for the Morehouse Association, has been known to lift up the Lord’s Supper, but not in the way you might expect. During his first pastorate at a small country church, Price prepared to observe his first Lord’s Supper as a pastor. Unbeknownst to him, workers had placed a cloth not only over the elements of the Supper, but also beneath them, so that when Price went to remove the top cloth, he accidentally took hold of the bottom cloth. The deacon on the other side of the altar, following his pastor’s lead, also took hold of the bottom cloth and before either of them knew what was happening, they had lifted the Lord’s Supper off the table. “For a moment we levitated the grape juice, with sweat popping out on both our foreheads,” Price said. Then the deacon whispered, “Preacher put it down very slowly,” which Price did. From then, the service went smoothly. Price has gone through shaky times, as the incident above illustrates, as well as humbling times, … [Read more...]
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