The U.S. Treasury Department released the new withholding tables under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, drawing the praise of at least one Louisiana congressman. U.S. Rep Mike Johnson released a statement on Jan. 11, the day the Treasury Department announced the news that likely will increase the amount of money a number of American workers take home each paycheck, starting as early as February. “I am proud to have worked with my colleagues and the administration to deliver real relief to the American people by passing our historic tax reform package,” said Johnson, a member of First Baptist Church, Bossier City. “Despite many false claims regarding the effects of our efforts, hardworking Americans are already seeing the immediate benefits of this new, pro-growth tax code. Businesses are rewarding their employees, expanding their operations and making new investments as a direct result of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. And now, the Treasury Department has updated its withholding calculations and confirmed that 90 percent of Americans will take home a bigger paycheck starting in February. The new year is off to an exciting start, and I look forward to many more great things to come.” In a news release by the Treasury Department, … [Read more...]

By Gary Myers, NOBTS Communications NEW ORLEANS – A two-year-old child died Jan. 11 while eating lunch at the Early Learning Center at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary (NOBTS) in Gentilly. The child lost consciousness after choking on food just after noon Thursday. Efforts to resuscitate the child by members of the ELC staff and EMS responders were unsuccessful. NOBTS President Chuck Kelley said the seminary community is saddened by the death and called on members of the immediate community, and the larger Southern Baptist community to pray for the child’s family and all those affected by the death. “Our hearts are overwhelmed with sadness in the loss of one so young.  May all of us join together in praying for God’s grace, comfort, and strength to minister to this family and all of those affected by this tragic loss,” Kelley said. The seminary has mobilized grief counselors to speak with staff members, parents and children at the ELC. The Early Learning Center at NOBTS is a Tier III licensed child care center through the Louisiana Department of Education and currently enrolls 76 children between the ages of six weeks and four years old. The preschool center opened in 1952 to provide a preschool … [Read more...]

By Message Staff PINEVILLE – The schedule for the 2018 state Evangelism Conference is now available. Known as ECON, the conference will take place Jan. 22-23 at First Baptist Church, Pineville. ECON will feature inspiring messages by speakers from Louisiana and beyond. Each message will center around the theme verse, John 4:35. ECON will serve as the official launch for the Harvest, an initiative to “pray for every home and share Christ with every person” began in the fall of 2015 with a small group of leading pastors. Strategy development and the enlistment of churches were undertaken in 2016.  Statewide evangelism training sessions were held in 2017 and different methods were piloted. Now, there will be a concerted push by nearly 900 Louisiana Baptist churches in concentrated prayer and soul-winning activities. The cooperative effort includes a diversity of approaches such as multi-church crusades, door-to-door outreach, one-on-one evangelism, single-church revivals and other activities which leverage compassion ministries to share about the love of Christ. The vision has caught on, with church participation far-exceeding the original goal of 700 partnering congregations. Ray Jones will return to the ECON for a … [Read more...]

By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer PINEVILLE – Ron Herrod has traveled the world and trained thousands of pastors but none of his ministry experiences have been more pivotal than the teenage years that fundamentally shaped his spiritual journey. Saved at age 15 during a youth camp in Macon, Miss., just two months later Herrod committed his life to the Gospel ministry just two months later. Then just shy of turning 16 years old Herrod started serving as pastor of his first church, Lambert Grove Mission in Chickasaw, Ala. It would be his first pastorate during 36 years of ministry to congregations in Alabama, Arkansas and Louisiana. Herrod, founder of Ron Herrod Evangelism Ministries Association in Knoxville, Tenn., will speak during the Jan. 22 morning session of the 2018 Louisiana Baptist Convention Evangelism Conference at First Baptist Church in Pineville, as part of a two-day program of speakers. He will be joined in the program by Fred Luter, pastor of Franklin Avenue Baptist Church, New Orleans, and former president of the Southern Baptist Convention; Brent Crowe, vice president of the Student Leadership University, Orlando, Fla.; Rick Gage, founder of GO TELL Ministries, Atlanta, Ga.; Sammy Tippit, founder … [Read more...]

By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer GONZALES — Louisiana natives Daniel and Eric Guiffreda have teamed up for the ultimate road trip as one of 11 teams featured on the show “The Amazing Race,” which is airing for the next two months on CBS. The twins are determined to survive the weekly elimination challenges and win the various legs of a race around the world in order to take home the first-place prize of $1 million. Filming for the show began in late September and wrapped up a month later, however, the first episode only aired Jan. 3. The brothers prevailed in the first elimination contest, advancing to round two, which will air Jan. 10, 7 p.m. While the brothers – both firemen in Gonzales – were unable to share with the Baptist Message details about what happened during the filming, they said the experience was among their most memorable together. BROTHERS IN CHRIST Daniel, a member of First Baptist Church, Gonzales, and Eric, a member of Cross Point Baptist Church, Baton Rouge, said that after they served together as Marines in Iraq and started families of their own, they thought their brother-to-brother traveling days were over. Then they received a call Sept. 11, informing them they had been chosen to … [Read more...]

By Louisiana Family Forum 2018 is the year of honor at Louisiana Family Forum. In February, Louisiana Family Forum will honor marriage by celebrating the 2018 Longest Married Couple. We will also recognize the Top-Ten Longest Married couples in Louisiana in the organization’s 2018 Marriage Hall of Fame. To be eligible, couples must be married for at least 70 years. Applications must be submitted to Louisiana Family Forum by Feb. 7 to info@lafamilyforum.org or call the LFF office at 225-344-8533 or 800-606-6470. Information needed in each application is the nominee's contact information, story and a key contact person's email address and phone number. … [Read more...]