By Norm Miller, LC News PINEVILLE (LCNews) – With the anticipated reduction in TOPS, Louisiana College in Pineville is closing the college tuition affordability gap by offering to qualified enrolling freshmen and transfer students who live on campus the G. Earl Guinn Scholarship. “Louisiana College takes seriously the value and proven advantages of campus residential life,” said Rick Brewer, president of Louisiana College. “Residential students perform at a higher level academically, adapt more quickly for life after college, and establish lifetime relationships.” Brewer said LC is also “serious about the shortfall created by TOPS cuts and how that affects families with college-bound students. We are as committed to making college affordable as we are in continuing our rich tradition of academic excellence and heritage of spiritual development.” The G. Earl Guinn Scholarship is named in honor of Louisiana College’s 5th president. He served from 1951 to 1975. LC has significantly reduced tuition for international students enrolling in the college for the first time to a cost that is more than 60 percent less than peer institutions. Qualified enrolling freshmen will pay  at only $10,000 for two, 12-18 hour semesters … [Read more...]

By Message Staff Louisiana College is positioned for a bright future, President Rick Brewer told Louisiana Baptists Associate Director of Communications and Stewardship Strategist Matt Tullos, during a recent interview. “Our vision is to prepare graduates and transform lives,” Brewer added, describing Louisiana College as "transformational" through the exceptional people, programs and places students experience by being part of the Wildcat family and being active in its campus community. Brewer shared about new scholarships, such as the C.S. Lewis Honors Scholars Program (valued at $8,500) for qualified enrolling freshmen who score 28 or higher on the ACT, and, the Francis Schaeffer Scholarship Program, a $2,500 tuition scholarship per year for four years -- that requires involvement as leaders for Disciple Now events in Louisiana Baptist churches, as well participation in mission service projects. Brewer also said 17 buildings on campus have received new roofs, windows in Alexandria Hall have been replaced and Guinn Auditorium is undergoing a $6.5 million refurbishment, adding that he hopes the renovations inside Guinn Auditorium will be complete by the summer of 2018. He also expressed gratitude to Louisiana … [Read more...]

PINEVILLE (LCNews) -- Louisiana College will honor former legendary coach Billy Allgood March 29 at 3:30 p.m. by dedicating a new sign on the campus at the entrance to Billy Allgood Field. Allgood came to LC as head basketball coach and assistant football coach in 1959. He was appointed athletic director in 1965 and was given head baseball coach responsibilities in 1969. Athletes from that 1959 team have led in procuring the sign and planning the dedication ceremony. Two of those athletes -- Bobby Tindall and Larry Ladner -- will be on-hand to speak at the dedication. In 26 years as basketball coach, Allgood’s teams won 327 games, which ranks him sixth all-time among college basketball coaches in the state. Twice, Allgood was chosen NAIA District 30 Coach of the Year, and he was picked as coach of the North team in the 1979 and 1980 Louisiana collegiate all-star games. In 1986, the Louisiana Association of Basketball Coaches tabbed him "Mr. Louisiana Basketball," and the group inducted him into its Hall of Fame in 1990.  Allgood has also been elected to the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame. Allgood's 1969-70 team, led by Billy Jones, became the first in school history to win 20 games. Included among those wins was … [Read more...]

BATON ROUGE – New Orleans Pastor Fred Luter will headline next month’s Louisiana Governor’s Prayer Breakfast. Scheduled for April 11 at the Raising Cane’s River Center, 275 River Road S. in Baton Rouge, the prayer breakfast will feature Luter, who will share how prayer has impacted his life as pastor of Franklin Avenue Baptist Church in New Orleans, according to a news release from the office of the Louisiana Governor’s Prayer Breakfast. Luter, the first African-American to become president of the Southern Baptist Convention, grew Franklin Avenue Baptist Church from 65 members in 1986 to more than 5,600 today. Since 2009, Franklin Avenue Baptist Church has baptized at least 120 people, including 121 in 2016. Luter’s strategy for congregational growth can be traced to a concept he calls FRANgelism. His congregation is encouraged to invited one of the following groups from among the acronym FRAN to attend church – friends, relatives, associates and neighbors. Also featured on the program is Rick Skaggs, a 14-time Grammy Award winner from Hendersonville, Tenn. Skaggs will perform a variety of Christian and patriotic songs. Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards will address elected officials and others in attendance at the … [Read more...]

By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer WOODWORTH – The upcoming Royal Ambassador Congress will honor those who serve and protect the United States at home and abroad. Scheduled for April 7-8 at the Tall Timbers Conference Center, the RA Congress for first through sixth grade boys will feature testimonies from law enforcement and armed forces officers as an emphasis of this year’s theme, Honor the Protectors. “Many of the boys may never have had much interaction with a law enforcement officer or someone else who protects them,” said Mike Collie, RA consultant for Louisiana Baptists. “This year’s RA Congress will allow them some time with those on the front lines while exposing them to the Gospel.” RA Congress also will include its annual Pinewood Derby, where participants display their cars before the race, and soap box races, camp craft skills competitions and presentations from David Cheatwood, a Louisiana Baptist Disaster Relief volunteer, and Bill Robertson, pastoral leadership director for Louisiana Baptists. The cost for RA Congress is $63 per person, based on multiple-occupancy of rooms, and includes lodging, three meals, a shirt and registration. March 31 is the deadline to register. For more … [Read more...]

By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer NOVA SCOTIA/NEW BRUNSWICK – Louis Charrier was putting the finishing touches on his famous southern Louisiana gumbo and already a line of 15 people was forming, eager to get a taste of the Cajun dish at a Labor Day block party in Dieppe, New Brunswick, far from the Bayou state. Moments later, some fellow Louisiana Baptists begin serving the cuisine by the bowl, along with an evangelism tract telling the purpose of their trip to the Canadian province. One of three trips Louisiana Baptists have taken to Nova Scotia and neighboring New Brunswick in 2016, the Cajun Connection is a joint effort by churches around the state. While there, they minister with a church to conduct door-to-door surveys, Vacation Bible School and student ministry. This outreach, which aims to connect the culture of Louisiana with its northern roots, began in 2004 with Louisiana missionaries Winter and Betty Case from Stonewall, who spent two years in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and opened a door of opportunity to share Christ. HISTORICAL TIES Cajuns are descendants of the French Canadians who came to Louisiana more than 260 years ago, moving from Nova Scotia starting in 1755, when Great Britain acquired … [Read more...]

IN REMEMBERANCE Gene Williams, 89, went to be with his Lord and Savior Dec. 18. He was born in Corsicana, Texas in 1927 to Henry and Iola Williams. He received a Bachelor of Arts from Baylor, a Master of Divinity degree and the Doctor of Philosophy degree from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. After listening to the radio broadcast of old-time evangelist Mordecai Ham, nine-year-old little Gene accepted Christ as his Savior. Later at the age of 15, he started preaching in 1942 when the pulpit supply minister did not show up for a service. By 1944 he had started working at his first church, a Baptist church that met half-time, sharing a building with the Methodists. In 1945 he was ordained into the Gospel ministry and in 1948 was pastoring his first church full-time when he married the former Dorothy Fiew. After serving as pastor of churches in Texas, Louisiana and Alabama, he entered vocational evangelism in 1957. Williams conducted his first missions focused overseas crusade in 1960 in Jamaica. He has led over 2,000 revival meetings in America and over 135 overseas crusades in foreign countries. He founded Williams Ministries in 1959 and in addition to leading revival meetings, Williams served as chairman of the board … [Read more...]

By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer MANDEVILLE – Scheduled for March 31-April 1 at First Baptist Church in Mandeville, the Louisiana Baptist Woman’s Missionary Union will hold a Mission Celebration and its 117th Annual Meeting, highlighting how the WMU is participating in what God is doing in the state, North America and around the world. “The scriptural focus for this year’s Mission Celebration is Jeremiah 17:7-8, which challenges us to be grounded, knowing our purpose; to be growing, actively involved in missions with mind, body and soul; and to be bearing fruit, to be productive kingdom women,” said Janie Wise, Louisiana Baptists’ women’s missions and ministry strategist. “When we meet in Mandeville, we will celebrate missions and WMU organizations on mission in our churches. We also desire to be challenged to seek God’s guidance in all our mission efforts.” The event kicks off Friday evening with a missions fair at 5 p.m. and a general session at 6:45 p.m. Saturday morning, at 7:15, the Louisiana Baptist Nursing Fellowship will hold its annual breakfast, which is open to members and other interested health care professionals. There will be a prayer experience during the morning session and new WMU officers … [Read more...]