Lewisburg church sees 36 baptisms, 29 additions in just seven months

Long

LEWISBURG — Just inviting friends to come to church is still an effective way to introduce them to the gospel, affirms Jack Long, pastor of Farmington Baptist Church in Lewisburg.

And, if you add old-fashioned visits to the equation, it makes it doubly effective, said Long, a retired associational missions strategist (director of missions) for Beulah Baptist Association, based in Union City, who with his wife Charlotte, moved to Columbia last year to be near family.

They joined First Baptist Church, Columbia, and became active there, but in December, Farmington asked Long to fill the pulpit as they continued a search for a pastor. 

Long agreed and though he told the church he did not want to be considered for the pastorate, God had other ideas. The Lord changed his heart about taking the position and in March of this year, Farmington called him as pastor and God went to work, Long said. [Read more…]

Members of Dalewood Baptist Church and Awaken Church, along with guests, visit the food line during an event at Dalewood on Oct. 22. — Photos by April Dawson

The parking lot at Dalewood Baptist Church, Nashville, had the feel of a football-tailgating gathering on the evening of Oct. 22.

In an event that was dubbed “Fall’owship” by Dalewood’s transitional interim pastor Mike Dawson, the night featured a joint gathering of two congregations: Dalewood Baptist and Awaken Church.

The two churches have formed a connection in recent weeks after Awaken — a church plant — began holding its weekly worship services on the Dalewood campus.

The “Fall’owship” featured live worship music, cornhole, food and other activities for the members (and guests) from the two churches. [Read more…]

A team from Union Baptist Church, Lexington, prepares for Mission Quest. Pictured are Duke Tolley, Ray Cunningham, Jensen Carver, Adam Carver and Aiden Beal.

LINDEN — For more than 100 years, Royal Ambassadors (RAs) has been a missions education program for boys that includes RA racers, camping and related activities. 

In the early 1970s, a small group of men in West Tennessee put together an event that would provide missions education in an outdoor setting and an opportunity for fathers and sons to share quality time together.  

The “camporee” was held at Camp Cordova, owned by the Shelby County Baptist Association. The event was moved to Linden Valley Baptist Conference Center in 2008.

Over the past 50 years, the name, the location and leadership have changed but the commitment to the purpose and the event has remained strong. The number of attendees for the three-day weekend event ranged from a few hundred to more than 1,100 at the highest point. What began as churches around Memphis participating has grown to include churches from across Tennessee and other states. [Read more…]

Monica Kemp, right, a director of the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board and member of Hope of Glory Baptist Church, Brownsville, delivered a gift bag to Randy Crews Sr., and his wife, Melvene, of Dyersburg. Kemp said the extra check provided by the TBMB to Mission:Dignity recipients in Tennessee was “a blessing.”

FRANKLIN — Mission:Dignity recipients in Tennessee received a special surprise in their mailboxes in October — an unexpected 13th chec

Mission:Dignity is a ministry of GuideStone Financial Resources which provides a monthly stipend to individuals 65 or over who (a) were employed by or otherwise served local Baptist churches in a paid ministry (such as a full-time evangelist) for at least 10 years and (b) whose monthly income falls at or below the current poverty level as established by the federal government.

As of Oct. 1, 148 individuals (32 couples, 84 singles/widows), representing 116 households in Tennessee, receive monthly checks through Mission:Dignity. Monthly disbursements range from $275 per month to $750 per month.

Given the rapid rise of inflation this year, the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board explored the possibility of helping Mission:Dignity recipients earlier this summer, said Roger “Sing” Oldham, pastor engagement specialist for the TBMB.

Oldham noted that Kyle Scott, operations manager for Mission:Dignity for GuideStone, shared with TBMB staff that inflation is having “a profound impact” on Mission:Dignity recipients. [Read more…]

Editor’s note: This article is an update to the article that appears in the Oct. 26 print issue of the Baptist and Reflector.

MOUNT JULIET — Tennessee Baptist Disaster Relief teams have completed their response in Wauchula, Fla., where the DR units were aiding the recovery efforts following Hurricane Ian.  

“We are grateful for the work of all the volunteers who have responded so far, ” said Wes Jones, disaster relief specialist for the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board.  “We are now taking future recovery teams and moving them to areas that still have a lot of work to do.”  

Tennessee DR will now be sending multiple teams to Arcadia, Fla., to continue to assist the recovery efforts, Jones said. Teams had been scheduled to go to Venice, Fla., but the site there is closing soon. [Read more…]

SPRINGFIELD — When it comes to finding unique ways to share the gospel, David Evans is always on the lookout.

Evans, pastor of Springfield Baptist Church, recently learned that Springfield and Robertson County has a large population of people who own jeeps. He also discovered that jeep owners like rubber ducks.

“The Jeep community has a thing with rubber ducks,” Evans explained. When those who have a Jeep see another Jeep in a parking lot, they probably have a rubber duck in their car because in that community, they’ll just walk up and they’ll put it on the hood or in the driver’s door handle and then leave, he said.

The rubber duck has become a symbol of encouragement to jeep owners, Evans continued. “When I hear of something unique like this, I naturally think, ‘How can we use this to share the gospel?’ ”

Prior to becoming pastor at Springfield, Evans served as evangelism team leader for the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board.  [Read more…]

The football teams from Dyersburg High School and Dyer County High School attend a joint worship service at First Baptist Church, Newbern. Through response cards, there were 85 professions of faith recorded.

DYERSBURG — When two high schools came together for an event earlier this fall, the Holy Spirit did some big and powerful things.

There was a revival among the rivals. And the impact was eternal.

Two days before the football game between Dyersburg High School and Dyer County High School, students and staff members from the two schools gathered at First Baptist Church, Newbern, for a “joint” worship service. 

Roughly 250 youth attended the event, and, at the end of the night, 85 students indicated (through response cards) that they had made professions of faith. An additional 41 students rededicated their lives to Christ. 

Mike McCullough, associate pastor and student pastor at FBC, helped organize the event. The service included music from the FBC youth worship team, followed by a message from FBC pastor Mark LaRue, who presented the gospel.  [Read more…]