By Baptist Message staff WASHINGTON, D.C. (LBM) – The U.S. House of Representatives narrowly passed, Feb. 25, the Equality Act, a bill that would amend the 1964 Civil Rights Act to protect people from discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation. However, critics of the bill contend it poses a serious threat to religious liberty and women’s sports as well as the unborn. The legislation “expands the definition of public accommodations to include places or establishments that provide (1) exhibitions, recreation, exercise, amusement, gatherings, or displays; (2) goods, services, or programs; and (3) transportation services. The bill allows the Department of Justice to intervene in equal protection actions in federal court on account of sexual orientation or gender identity.” Meaning, the bill could force females to share locker rooms and restrooms with biological males, whether transitioned or not. National Right to Life posted on their Facebook page that the Equality Act contains language “that could be construed to create a right to demand abortion from health care providers, and likely would place at risk the authority of the government to prohibit taxpayer-funded abortions.” Three Republicans … [Read more...]

By Brian Blackwell, Baptist Message staff writer SHREVEPORT, La. (LBM) – Contemporary Christian musical artist Jason Lovins has never met his dad, but the love shown by his mother and grandmother sustain him, he said Jan. 26. At 15 years old, his mother was raped and did not realize she was pregnant until after a visit to her doctor. The news shocked the family, but they supported Lisa’s choice to go through with the pregnancy. “I had a praying mawmaw who said we’re going to go to church and we’re going to pray,” Lovins shared with Louisiana Baptists during the second day of the 2021 Evangelism Conference at Summer Grove Baptist Church in Shreveport. “And that’s what they did. “If you would have heard her tell the story, she would have made it sound so simple,” he explained. “And I understand that it couldn’t have been that easy. But, you see, my grandmother very much understood how big God is. She believed that He is so big, in fact, that He wasn’t surprised by me.” Lovins, the lead singer for the Jason Lovins Band of Ashland, Kentucky, credited his grandmother, Mary Jo, with a faith that helped guide the family throughout the ordeal. “She believed with all of her heart these things that we read in Jeremiah that … [Read more...]