By Louisiana Baptist Children's Home communications MONROE, La. (LBCH) - Louisiana Baptist Children’s Home and Family Ministries is joining efforts to reduce the spread of the COVID-19 virus. All administrative and support service offices on the Monroe campus will be closed from Saturday March 21st through Sunday April 5th, LBCH President and CEO Perry Hancock said. Administrative staff will continue their work through remote access portals. Granberry Counseling Centers will serve clients through a secured teleconferencing network. The Children’s Home will continue services for all children, young adults, and families in residence. The campus will be closed to visitors. Campus tours and church group activities will be rescheduled. These measures and others will reduce the exposure that our residents and staff have to the virus, Hancock said. "Ultimately, we trust God to accomplish His will and purpose through this crisis," Hancock said. "Know that our LBCHFM family is praying for you as you pray for us. Remember Philippians 4:6, 7 - 'Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses every thought, … [Read more...]
Louisiana College updates COVID-19 response
By Norm Miller, LCNews PINEVILLE, La. (LCNews)—Based on advisories from local, state, and federal health officials, Louisiana College administrators have updated responses to the coronavirus COVID-19. All public events previously scheduled for the current semester have been postponed. The May 9 Commencement services are rescheduled for August 8 and will be held in Guinn Auditorium: one at 10 a.m. for undergraduate students and the other at 2 p.m. for graduate students. Both services will be livestreamed. On March 30 and for the remainder of the semester, face-to-face classes will transition to online classes for remote learning. “For students without Wi-fi access, we are asking local churches to give students access to their Wi-fi,” said Louisiana College President Dr. Rick Brewer. For students who opt to remain on campus for the rest of this semester, Louisiana College’s food service will remain uninterrupted. However, all cafeteria meals will be take-out. No meals will be served in the cafeteria. For the foreseeable future, LC is discontinuing all campus food service to the local community. During the March 23-27 Spring Break, the Den and Starbucks will be closed. Subway will remain open. The Student Success … [Read more...]
State missions staff gathers to pray in wake of coronavirus pandemic
By Message Staff ALEXANDRIA, La. (LBM) – During a special time of prayer March 16, Louisiana Baptists Executive Director Steve Horn told state missions staff to not succumbed to panic but to pray. “We pray because we should always pray,” Horn told the Baptist Message. “Specific to our present crisis, we pray because we need God’s intervention. We also need God’s wisdom. Pastors are literally having to throw out one model of ministry and develop an entire new model for ministry. We are having to do that as a state mission services staff as well.” Horn led state missions staff in prayers for God to stop the pandemic and save lives; for President Donald Trump and other government leaders; for the Lord to grant wisdom in this moment of fear; and for God to protect SBC missionaries and their families, and emergency responders. The same prayers were the focus of Southern Baptist churches during a day of prayer on Sunday, March 15. Horn offered Luke 18:1-8, James 1:5 and 2 Chronicles 6:28-31 as encouraging verses to look toward in the days ahead. State missions staff will continue to pray at 9:30 a.m. daily at the Baptist Building in Alexandria until further notice, Horn said. … [Read more...]
Churches take extraordinary measures during extraordinary times
By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer ALEXANDRIA, La. (LBM) — Amid event cancellations, school closures and bans on meetings of more than 250 people statewide in the wake of Coronavirus 2019, COVID-19, Louisiana Baptist churches moved ahead with worship services Sunday, March 15. Some churches employed social media to broadcast services, many preceded with normal operations and others added services to accommodate enough worshipers that would allow them to comply with Governor John Bel Edwards' proclamation issued March 13. Edwards mandated that all events of more than 250 people in attendance temporarily were halted to protect the health and safety of Louisiana’s citizens. He also ordered all public schools closed from March 16 to April 13, and reduced face-to-face public interaction at state government buildings. Churches also joined other churches across the Southern Baptist for a dedicated day of prayer for the situation. Bonita Road Baptist Church, which averages 400 people on Sundays, held worship services simultaneously at two locations on its main campus in Log Cabin so it would not exceed the limit on meetings of more than 250 people, Pastor Casey Johnson told the Baptist Message. The church’s campus in Mer … [Read more...]
Prayers, suggestions for worship offered in light of coronavirus situation
Greetings, Your state missions staff continues to monitor the quickly evolving coronavirus situation and appreciate your prayers as we process all of the information coming from federal and state sources. We posted information and suggestions yesterday regarding Sunday services. While many of these are still valid, the Governor’s proclamation today certainly tweaks and changes some of those. As you know, every church is autonomous therefore the Executive Board does not have the prerogative to pass down directives to Louisiana Baptist churches. However, after conducting conference calls today with several pastors and Directors of Missions, here are some suggestions for you to consider over the next several weeks. If your congregation runs under 250 in attendance, which the vast majority of our churches do, the suggestions offered yesterday are still worthy of consideration. For those of you who run over 250, here are some ideas you may find helpful: Consider foregoing Sunday School and hold multiple worship services thus assuring your congregation remains under the 250 limit. For those who already have two Sunday Schools and two worship services, in addition to foregoing Sunday School, you may need to adjust your schedule … [Read more...]
Louisiana College suspends classes; reschedules Spring break
By Norm Miller, LCNews PINEVILLE, La. (LCNews)—Louisiana College administration will suspend in-person classes March 16 – March 20 and will observe Spring break the week of March 23 – March 27 in response to concerns regarding Coronavirus COVID-19. “These precautionary steps come from an abundance of caution and our concern regarding the health, well-being, and safety of our Louisiana College family,” said Louisiana College President Dr. Rick Brewer. “A two-week break gives our President’s Leadership Team ample time to consider inter-related campus logistics. This also enables faculty to ramp-up as we migrate to online instruction and other remote learning methods beginning March 30.” Residential students may opt to remain on campus, and college food services will be available for the week of March 16, but not for Spring break, as is usual. Food services will resume March 30. “Our hope is to return to face-to-face classes on April 20, but that is not a fixed decision,” Brewer said. The College’s highly promoted Preview Day that was set for March 21 has been postponed to April 18. “Because COVID-19 has created extremely fluid circumstances, our Team remains vigilant and flexible as this situation changes … [Read more...]
Day of prayer this Sunday regarding the COVID-19 pandemic
By Steve Horn, Louisiana Baptist Convention Executive Director I have said through the years that my most memorable time of worship ever was the Sunday after 9/11. The crowd was larger. We sang louder. We had a greater sense of desperation. That’s the way I feel today. The crowds likely won’t be as large this Sunday, March 15, because of fears of gathering in large crowds and the need for many elderly to stay home, but if you are well and can gather, I sense that this will be a special day of worship. I am joining the call of our Southern Baptist Convention leaders in asking every church in Louisiana to have a special moment of prayer in your worship this Sunday. You can view and share their call using this link. Some of you may even be led to dedicate your entire worship service just to prayer. As a pastor I did this on a number of occasions. This was always a meaningful time of worship. Pastors, you can use these suggestions to guide your praying. Send it out to those members who might choose not to attend. Whatever you decide to do Sunday, let us pray in focused, concentrated prayer. As we prepare to pray, I think of these Scriptures . . . Luke 18:1-8, the Parable of the Persistent Widow—Luke introduced this … [Read more...]
Socialism or stewardship? Doing business God’s way
By Norm Miller, LCNews PINEVILLE, La. (LCNews) - Louisiana College’s annual God in the Workplace series continues March 23 at 6 p.m. in Guinn Auditorium. Addressing the topic “Socialism or Stewardship? Doing Business God’s Way,” will be Dr. Jay W. Richards and Mr. Earl B. Heard. Dr. Richards is a Research Assistant Professor at Catholic University of America/Busch School of Business in Washington, D.C. He is the 2010 Templeton Enterprise Award winner, a best-selling author, and co-author of “The Privileged Planet.” Mr. Heard is CEO/Founder of BIC Alliance in Houston and author of seven books. He is also a Louisiana College alumnus. “We are pleased to have such qualified and accomplished speakers to keynote this year’s God in the Workplace Series,” said Dr. Rick Brewer, president of Louisiana College. “With all the contemporary talk regarding Socialism, I am sure these men will bring a balance as they highlight God’s plan of stewardship not only for business, but for the totality of life.” Pastors, church members, business leaders, and the general public are warmly invited to attend this free, yet valuable event. … [Read more...]
NOBTS changes classes in response to COVID
By NOBTS Office of Public Relations NEW ORLEANS, La. (NOBTS) - Both the governor of our state and the mayor of our city have declared a public health emergency, urging all citizens and residents to avoid large group gatherings to minimize the spread of COVID-19. In response to these statements, NOBTS and Leavell College are suspending all face to face classes and other large group gatherings until further notice, and will rely on online alternatives for course delivery. Face to face instruction and suspension of larger group gatherings will begin at the 5:00 pm, March 12, 2020. We will reassess the duration of this suspension by the end of Spring Break, next week, to determine if it needs to be extended further. This decision is effective for the NOLA campus as well as all extension centers. While there are no known presumptive cases on our campus at this time, there are at least 13 presumptive positive cases in Louisiana, with 10 of these being in New Orleans. As such, this decision is in the best interest of the NOBTS family and her surrounding communities. All face to face courses and large group gatherings are suspended beginning 5:00 pm, March 12, 2020. Our campus, student housing, and student services will remain open. … [Read more...]
MITCHELL: Marxist concepts have footholds at SEBTS, SBTS
By Will Hall, Message Executive Editor CORRECTION: Kevin Jones of Southern Seminary is the co-editor of "Removing the stain of racism in the SBC," with Jarvis Williams, also of SBTS. In the original version of this article, Kevin Smith was wrongly identified with this book. I apologize to Dr. Smith for the error and for any negative impacts resulting from this misidentification. -- Will Hall, Ph.D., Executive Editor PINEVILLE, La. (LBM) — Speaking to Louisiana College students as part of a “Christ, Church, and Culture” series about current cultural issues from a biblical perspective, a national speaker on ethics explained the controversial concepts of Critical Race Theory and Intersectionality, and expressed worries that these Marxist ideologies have gained footholds among the faculty of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, and the Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, North Carolina. Craig Mitchell, president of the Ethics and Political Economy Center, an evangelical think tank based in Dallas, Texas, described Critical Race Theory and Intersectionality as emerging from Marxist thought, which as its primary tenet declares that there is no God. He added that these … [Read more...]
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