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Baptist Message

"Helping Louisiana Baptists Impact the World For Christ"

Matthew Hurst,
The Well Church
Len Miller,
Trinity Baptist Church, Lake Charles
McKinley Davis,
First Baptist Church, Coushatta

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Do you embrace transitions?

August 10, 2020

By Stewart Holloway PINEVILLE, La. - Transitions are some of the most beautiful things that occur in life. In music, we can feel our spirits lift as a modulation occurs. In sports, transitions cause us to rise from our seats and cheer on our team as the football is run into the end zone or the basketball is passed to a player who shoots and scores. In creation, the daily sunrise and sunset and the seasonal changes can take our breath away. As we live our lives, we see a lot of persona...l transitions: the first day of school, graduation day, wedding day, first job, new job, new home, first child, first grandchild, etc. Most transitions come at beautiful times in life. We celebrate them as they happen, and remember them with fondness as we look back through pictures and videos. Have you ever stopped to realize, though, that every transition, no matter how beautiful, has a bit of fear attached to it? Will the musicians make that key change effectively? Will the catch be made? What does the night hold? What does the new day hold? What will this year of school be like? What will being on my own be like? Is this really the person for me to marry? What kind of parents will we be? Will we be able to handle the empty … [Read more...]

Looking forward by looking back

August 6, 2020

By Chuck Kelley On August 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina made landfall near New Orleans, creating the greatest natural disaster in the history of the Unites States. The levees protecting the city were breached, and 70% of the city, including the campus of New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, went underwater for weeks. The unprecedented devastation included thousands killed, tens of thousands displaced among all fifty states, countless businesses shuttered, no cell service for weeks, no power and no mail delivery for months. In the blink of an eye, life changed completely for the people of New Orleans and the nearby Gulf Coast. Today a far greater catastrophe has come. The Covid 19 virus has changed life completely for our nation and the entire planet. As of this writing, hundreds of thousands have been infected on every continent. Tens of thousands have died. There is not yet a cure or a vaccine. To limit its spread, public gatherings, sporting events, and activities as basic as children going to school and their parents going to work have been cancelled. A devastating economic impact is rapidly unfolding. This crisis affects us all, everyone in the whole world. As I look back on leading NOBTS through the Katrina … [Read more...]

The Father’s heart of the lost

August 3, 2020

By Lane Corley MADISONVILLE, La. - In Luke 15, Jesus gives us a glimpse of the Father’s heart for the lost. 1. Those far from God liked Jesus and he liked them (verse 1). Is that true of me? When was the last time someone far from God approached me? Am I available to them? Building relationships with them? 2. Jesus welcomed and ate with disreputable characters (verse 2). When was the last meal I had with someone far from God? Do I welcome or repel those far from God? 3. Jesus advocated leaving the crowd to “go after the lost one,” celebrating when the one is found (verse 4). Who’s the one that I’m going after right now? Do I celebrate one sinner’s repentance or only the crowd’s faithful participation? 4. Jesus advocated for “carefully” searching for the lost until found (verse 8). Can I say that my search for the lost is careful, deliberate, and diligent? 5. The lost, dishonorable son was met by a heart “filled with compassion” (verse 20). Do I have compassion or contempt for those far from God? Jesus’ words in Luke 15, remind us that following the Father’s heart may mean… --Being misunderstood --Focusing on fewer people, rather than large crowds --Careful, diligent, time consuming … [Read more...]

Three words for such a time as this

July 27, 2020

By Steve Horn ALEXANDRIA, La. - As we pass the mid-point of what seems like an extremely long year, several words come to mind that would be descriptive of how I feel about 2020. Unexpected would definitely be one of those words. No one expected COVID-19. No one saw the social unrest that has unfolded over the last several months. Another word would be uncertainty. It’s no surprise that unexpected events such as the ones we’ve experienced lead to uncertainty. Economic uncertainty. Health uncertainty. Emotional uncertainty. What can we do? What should we do? But even in the midst of these unexpected and uncertain times, I would include the word grateful. I’m grateful God has been faithful. Samuel sums it up well for me when he said, “So far, the Lord has helped us.” These unexpected and uncertain times have not caught Him off guard. I’m grateful for the spirit I’ve seen in Louisiana Baptists. You’ve been creative, stretching yourselves, utilizing unfamiliar technology for many of you, as you’ve continued to minister to each other and your communities. You have exhibited a God-honoring spirit that shows we may have been confined, but we were not contained. You cannot quarantine good news. I am grateful for your faithfulness … [Read more...]

Are you just sitting around?

July 23, 2020

By Stewart Holloway PINEVILLE, La. – When asked to engage in a new ministry, a pastor declined to even think about it saying, “We’re just waiting on this whole virus thing.” Essentially, this pastor and his church are doing nothing while a world crisis rages. That means they have lost five months of gospel impact while ministry is on pause. They are just sitting around waiting. I’m grateful that our church has decided not to do that. I do not see how any church CAN do that! The work of Christ must continue even in the midst of some of the oddest circumstances we have ever experienced. Like most churches, only about half of our people are back in person. At times that is discouraging (ok, it is always discouraging!), but then we hear of ministry happening outside the walls of the church - some of that in person but even more by phone, mail, and internet resources. Those reports encourage us that ministry is happening in multiple ways and places and lives are being touched. I am also encouraged by the giving of our people. In the middle of a pandemic and with half of our people still at home, we are closer to meeting budget at mid-year than I can remember. In addition, we have reduced our debt by almost $200,000. We have … [Read more...]

A radical proposal to eliminate the harms of COVID-19

July 17, 2020

By Will Hall, Baptist Message executive editor ALEXANDRIA, La. (LBM) – Our state and our nation needs to pinpoint its COVID-19 mitigation efforts to focus laser-like on those vulnerable to its serious effects in order to end the crushing impact of this pandemic on our families, our economy, our education system and our future. A few days ago, I signed a joint letter with other Louisiana Baptist leaders to commit to wearing a mask as a measure for fighting back against the surging disease and to ask other Louisiana Baptists to join us in this simple thing. I truly believe in this initiative as part of the answer to prevent spreading COVID-19 to others. Research shows that wearing masks, socially distancing and sanitizing frequently are good general measures to make a difference in reducing the spread of this disease within the general population. But, I am also convinced by the data from the Louisiana Department of Health that a more aggressive approach is needed to end the hospitalizations, ventilations and deaths in the state – which should be the primary concerns driving public policy in response to the pandemic (and not just the number of cases). In fact, I would argue that the number of cases is only relevant to this … [Read more...]

Patience and perseverance

July 14, 2020

By Waylon Bailey We all know the need for patience. When I think of the fruit of the Spirit, I am drawn to the quality of patience. I am drawn there because I often feel so inadequate with patience. You may feel the same. Frustration and aggravation sometimes seem to take over. But, it may not be patience that I need. What I really need is perseverance. This is the meaning of the word we normally translate as patience. I need to persevere. I need to be long-suffering. I need to not quit and not give up. I need to stand strong under the pressure. Perseverance and long-suffering is exactly what I perceive that we all need right now. We need it in our lives, and we need it as the church. We have all worked hard to keep going since March 13, but we may be getting weary in well-doing. It’s natural for us to get weary. After all, if that were not the case, Paul would not have written to encourage us to keep working and serving. I want to encourage you to keep on. Don’t give up on yourself and don’t give up on Christ and His church. Be found faithful and obedient. These are tough days, but our God is faithful. He will see us through until we hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant!” Waylon Bailey is pastor of First Baptist … [Read more...]

Which seminary? The first spiritual milestone in our marriage

July 9, 2020

By Chuck Kelley Rhonda and I met on our first Sunday at Baylor University. We began dating during that freshman year, became an exclusive couple our sophomore year, publicly committed to a serious relationship in our junior year, became engaged in our senior year, and were married in June after graduation. We stayed in college one more year for Rhonda to earn a Master’s degree to qualify for the work she expected to do, while I continued studying philosophy and working in collegiate ministry on our campus. It was in the middle of the summer, forty-five years ago this week, when we faced our first spiritual milestone as husband and wife. The issue was where to go to seminary, our first major life decision we had to make as husband and wife. Rhonda and I began the process in the ordinary way. We prayed about it regularly. We explored the options and talked through them. Fortunately, we both agreed on what appeared to be God’s clear, obvious choice. We would go to Fort Worth, TX to attend Southwestern Seminary. My calling was evangelism, and Southwestern had the most famous evangelism professor in SBC history and a great academic program in evangelism. I was already preaching all over Texas in revivals, conferences, and youth … [Read more...]

What do we do when we need a win?

July 7, 2020

By Steve Horn ALEXANDRIA, La. - At the risk of sounding like the cartoon character, The Born Loser, I confess to you that I’ve had my share of losing. In four seasons as a high school football player for example, we won 6 of 40 games and 2 of those 6 were taken away for using an ineligible player. I’m not sure how you’re feeling, but as we reach the midpoint of 2020, it sure seems like we could use a win right now. Recent statistical research among Southern Baptists and Louisiana Baptists reminds us we are losing ground on almost every number we count. The recent Supreme Court decisions regarding the redefinition of “sex” and the striking down of a Louisiana law mandating abortion providers have hospital admitting privileges feel like big losses. The escalation of racial tensions driven by injustices cause us to wonder if we have lost ground as it relates to race relations in America. And, if you believe many of the news reports, we seem to be falling behind in the fight against COVID-19. I don’t know about you, but I sure could use a “win.” So, this begs the question, what do we do when we need a win? I want to encourage us today to do at least three things. Watch your words. Blaming somebody else is not going … [Read more...]

The number one way to encourage a pastor

June 29, 2020

By Joe McKeever There was a time when it was easier to pastor a church than it is today. There was a time when churches running a thousand on Sunday were considered mega. There was a time when churches took what they had in the way of pastoral leadership and pretty much went with it without a lot of complaints. Those days are no more. It’s a different world we live in. People demand strengths and excellence and results from their leaders. They look for power in the pulpit and skills in relationships. They want degrees and winsomeness and it wouldn’t hurt if you looked sharp either. They want to be fed in sermons and challenged in programs. They want input in decisions and no longer hand the keys to the kingdom to the new preacher. What they do not want… –What most do not want is to be embarrassed by the preacher, for their church to become the laughingstock of the community, for the attendance to drop, or for the financial situation to become dire. –If they could, they would like the church to reach the unchurched and make a difference in the poorer section of town, but all the while retaining their church as it has always been. –If they could, they’d like to become a mission-minded congregation where … [Read more...]

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Editorial

Lord, that’s not how we do things!

By Joe McKeever “‘…your ways are not my ways,’ saith the Lord.”  (Isaiah 55:8) Keep an eye on how the Lord works in your life. You might learn something useful for the next time He wants to use you. This little couplet seems to sum up 90 percent of what Scripture and life teach us concerning the operation … Continue Reading.

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