By Michael Foust, Christian Examiner TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (Christian Examiner) – Caleb Castille, the lead actor in the new movie "Woodlawn," is accustomed to the audibles and last-second changes that make football so fun, having played the sport himself in college and having watched his father and two of his brothers join NFL teams. But even he was a little surprised by the "audible" that Woodlawn's moviemakers tossed at him less than a week prior to the first day of filming. Castille was set to be a stunt double for the lead actor in the film when the lead actor pulled out. Soon, Castille got a life-changing phone call. "Three days before production they called and said, 'We're looking at a few new guys and you're one of them.' So I went back through a three-day audition process and at the end of those three days, I was the one," Castille said. To read the rest of the story, click here. … [Read more...]

By David Roach, Baptist Press LAS VEGAS (BP) - Race relations, marijuana legalization, climate change and gun control were among the moral issues highlighted Oct. 13 at a Democratic presidential debate in Las Vegas involving five candidates. The issues of abortion and same-sex marriage came up only in passing and were mentioned only a few times during the two-hour debate. Perhaps the most extended reference to sanctity of life issues came when frontrunner Hillary Clinton alleged Republicans suspend their typical opposition to "big government" to regulate Planned Parenthood and limit access to abortions. "It's always the Republicans or their sympathizers who say, 'You can't have paid [maternity] leave. You can't provide health care,'" Clinton said. "They don't mind having big government to interfere with a woman's right to choose and to try to take down Planned Parenthood. They're fine with big government when it comes to that. I'm sick of it." Russell Moore, president of Southern Baptists' Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, responded on Twitter, "Secretary Clinton, it isn't 'big government' to stop the government from funding Planned Parenthood." Former Rhode Island Gov. Lincoln Chaffee … [Read more...]

By Mike Ebert, North American Mission Board SALT LAKE CITY (BP) - Trustees of the North American Mission Board have approved the establishment of Send Relief - a new compassion ministry to offer Southern Baptists opportunities to meet physical needs and serve underprivileged communities. Also during their Oct. 7 meeting, NAMB's trustees approved a $4 million budget reduction so the entity can send funds to assist International Mission Board (IMB) missionaries. NAMB President Kevin Ezell, commenting on the Send Relief initiative, noted shortly after trustees closed their meeting in Salt Lake City, "Imagine 40,000 Southern Baptist churches engaged to meet needs in their communities and across North America. Send Relief will give churches hands-on opportunities to alleviate suffering and transform lives." Send Relief will launch in 2016 and include compassion ministries to combat hunger, poverty, serve children through foster care and adoption, combat human trafficking, minister to migrants through international learning centers and meet inner-city needs with construction and medical teams. NAMB trustees approved David Melber as vice president of Send Relief. Melber has led Crossings Ministries camp outreach in … [Read more...]

By South Carolina Baptist Courier Staff COLUMBIA, S.C. (BP) - First Baptist is mourning yet, like so many other churches in Columbia, S.C., and across the state, engaging in ministry as flooding continues to grip Hurricane Joaquin survivors and first responders. Richard Milroy, 82, "died in his car sometime in the last couple of days due to devastating floods," minister of discipleship Wes Church wrote to First Baptist members, The Baptist Courier, newsjournal of the South Carolina Baptist Convention, reported Oct. 6. "How do we even begin to put into words all of the emotions we are experiencing?" Church said. "There is so much heartbreak and need in our community." Milroy was one of at least 17 drowning or auto accident fatalities from the hurricane's downpours in South and North Carolina. Some First Baptist members have lost homes or cars, and some have lost all their belongings. College and high school students and their leaders are helping clean up their flood-damaged homes. The church also is housing 13 South Carolina Baptist disaster relief volunteers who are feeding more than 1,000 first responders at a nearby city maintenance area. And volunteers are coordinating with a sister church to collect donations … [Read more...]

By Will Hall, Message Editor     Alexandria – For the first time in Southern Baptist Convention history, dating back to 1929 when a unified national budget was first proposed, designated receipts topped Cooperative Program gifts distributed by the SBC Executive Committee.   Moreover, what was a historical precedent in 2013 was repeated in 2014, making it the second time for this phenomenon to occur since the Great Commission Resurgence reforms were approved in 2010.   Now, the SBC Executive Committee has released the final numbers for 2015, indicating a third straight year of upended giving, with Baptist Press reporting Oct. 2 that gifts through the Cooperative Program amounted to more than $189 million, but designated giving exceeded $195 million.   12-YEAR TREND   Although this apparent new norm has taken place since the GCR reforms were approved (including the creation of a new category for giving, “Great Commission Giving” to “celebrate every dollar given”), information published in the SBC Annual shows this phenomenon has been developing since 2004.   That year the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering leapt by more than $20 million and the Annie Armstrong … [Read more...]

By Art Toalston, Baptist Press NASHVILLE (BP) - It's been an uplifting year for the Cooperative Program. The church led by SBC President Ronnie Floyd reached the $1-million mark during its 2014-15 budget year in giving to Southern Baptists' cornerstone channel for supporting missions and ministries -- state by state, nationally and internationally. "Increasing your church's support through the Cooperative Program is the greatest way you can forward the work of reaching the world for Christ," Floyd, senior pastor of Cross Church in northwest Arkansas, wrote in a Sept. 21 column. Floyd's column preceded the annual Cooperative Program Emphasis Month in the SBC each October. For online CP resources, click here. Noting the Cooperative Program's comprehensiveness in advancing the Gospel during its 90-year history, Floyd wrote: "Not one of us can adequately support any one cause, but all of us together can pray, plan, give, cooperate and support every cause." For the 2014-15 fiscal year, Cooperative Program gifts by Southern Baptist churches -- $189,160,231.41 -- reached 100.62 of the convention's Cooperative Program Allocation Budget to support the International Mission Board, North American Mission Board, the SBC's … [Read more...]