Telling the Story of Tennessee Baptists Since 1835
Baptist and Reflector
FRANKLIN — Tennessee Baptist Convention leaders Randy C. Davis and Bruce Chesser have followed up on a resolution passed by Tennessee Baptists at their annual meeting in November at First Baptist Concord in Knoxville with a letter to Tennessee’s state senators.
Tennessee Baptists approved without opposition a resolution in support of life and Tennessee Senate Bill 1236. [Read more…]
By Aaron Earls
LifeWay News Office
NASHVILLE — As retail stores hope the holiday shopping season gives their bottom line a lift, American Protestant pastors are less sure the economy is helping their congregations this year.
Around two in five pastors of Protestant churches in the United States (41 percent) say the economy is having no impact on their church, according to a new survey from Nashville-based LifeWay Research.
The rest are nearly split on whether the effect is positive (30 percent) or negative (26 percent).
“Fundamentally, the U.S. economy is in a similar place that it was a year ago,” said Scott McConnell, executive director of LifeWay Research. “Yet pastors are less optimistic about this outside influence on their church than they were in 2018.” [Read more…]
By Josh Wester
Baptist Press
NASHVILLE — The popular U.S. fast food chain, Chick-fil-A, Inc., recently announced a new policy concerning its charitable giving. According to an online statement, the policy, which will take effect in 2020, will focus the company’s charitable donations on the areas of hunger, homelessness and education.
In 2019, the Chick-fil-A Foundation, the company’s philanthropic arm, donated to upwards of 300 charitable organizations. Under the new policy, the foundation will distribute $9 million dollars in pledged donations next year and will limit its partnerships to only one charity for each of its three initiatives. [Read more…]
By Lonnie Wilkey
Editor, Baptist and Reflector
lwilkey@tnbaptist.org
In 2015, Tennessee legislators passed a state law that authorized local school boards across the state to put policies in place allowing students to be excused during the school day to attend a class in “religious moral instruction.”
The freedom to have release time for biblical or moral instruction actually has occurred for more than a century and possibly longer. It was contested in 1952 and the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Bible Release Time (Zorach versus Clauson, 343 U.S. 306). [Read more…]
By Lonnie Wilkey & Chris Turner
Baptist and Reflector
DENVER — If you love hiking and skiing and other outdoor activities, Denver is the place to live. If you love Jesus, you might get lonely.
People are flocking to Denver and its surrounding communities. In 2018, it was recognized as the fifth fastest growing large city (more than 300,000 residents) and 34th overall in the country by WalletHub, a financial services website, according to thedenverchannel.com.
Since 2007, Denver has become “Mecca” for Millennials (those born between 1981 to 1996), observed Dave Howeth, Send City Missionary for Denver with the North American Mission Board. [Read more…]
By David Dawson
Baptist and Reflector
ddawson@tnbaptist.org
SHELBYVILLE — “Does anyone know what a slo-fie is?” asked Donna Blaydes as she glanced around the classroom filled with adults.
After a few moments of mostly blank stares and silence, Blaydes explained that the term, which is only about three weeks old, refers to slow-motion “selfies” that can be recorded with the latest version of iPhones.
The response to Blaydes’ question perfectly illustrated the point that she was making: Technology is moving so rapidly that it can be challenging for parents and grandparents to keep up. [Read more…]
By David Dawson
Baptist and Reflector
ddawson@tnbaptist.org
SHELBYVILLE — While leading a breakout session called “Parenting and Grandparenting Gen Z Kids” at the TBMB’s conference, Debbie Doane revealed 10 common characteristics among Gen Z-ers. Doane then discussed ways in which these characteristics shape relationships with this demographic. By learning more about their world, it becomes easier to open the lines of communication, she said.
Gen Z kids have been surrounded by screens their whole lives. With the commercialization of the internet in 1995 — the year that many consider to be the start of Gen Z — and the influx of cell phones, Gen Z is seemingly always connected to something. [Read more…]
By Diana Chandler
Baptist Press
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee has asked the state to join him and his wife Maria in an official day of prayer and fasting Oct. 10.
-Facebook video screen capture
NASHVILLE (BP) — Southern Baptists across Tennessee told Baptist Press they support Gov. Bill Lee’s plea for the state to fast and pray Thursday (Oct. 10).
Tennessee Baptist Mission Board President Randy Davis, Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee President Ronnie Floyd, Tennessee pastor and former SBC President Steve Gaines and others told BP it’s beneficial for governmental officials to invite citizens to pray and fast.
“Christ followers need to join our governor’s call to set aside Oct. 10 as a day of fasting and prayer,” Davis told BP. “I call on Tennessee Baptists to lead in covering our beloved state in prayer.” [Read more…]
By Todd E. Brady
Assistant Professor of Ministry and Vice President for University Ministries, Union University
In 1949, George Lemer invented the Mr. Potato Head doll — a plastic body of a spud that could be decorated with various interchangeable parts like ears, eyes, shoes, a hat, a nose, and a mouth. As a kid, I had a Mr. Potato Head. My kids have a Mr. Potato Head. It’s funny to design silly faces with different pieces. Lemer, who died in 1995 probably never imagined that people would be picking and choosing preferential parts and specially-designing their own human being dolls. If he were alive, he’d probably laugh that there are actually people who are serious about this.
With Mattel’s latest line of dolls called Creatable World, that seems to be exactly what is happening. Mattel once divided the doll world into Kens and Barbies, but now they are putting forth gender-neutral dolls for “boys, girls and children in between.” These dolls are “designed specifically to have a youthful gender neutral appearance.” [Read more…]
The world is getting crazier by the day.
When I was a kid, toys were a luxury. You usually received them on Christmas and birthdays. Now, kids get toys year-round, mainly from grandparents who spoil their grandkids (and I confess that I am among that number). Shame on us.
But one toy my grandkids won’t be receiving is the new gender-fluid Creatable World doll from Mattel (see BP story). Barbie, Hot Wheels and countless other toys have worked well for Mattel for years. The long-time toy company certainly didn’t need to join the gender debate. [Read more…]
