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PKS FROM TENNESSEE REAP BENEFITS OF LOTTIE MOON CHRISTMAS OFFERING

December 5, 2022

By Lonnie Wilkey
Editor, Baptist and Reflector

Robert and Maridith Lane — shown here with their sons, Shepherd and Roscoe — have spent 10 years ministering to church planting teams, discipling church leaders, doing evangelism and helping train new missionaries in Uganda, South Sudan and Chad.

CORDOVA — Robert and Maridith Lane knew all about the Cooperative Program and the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering long before they became missionaries with the Southern Baptist International Mission Board in 2011. 

Both of them have dads who are ministers and both are products of Tennessee Baptist churches. 

Lane grew up in Faith Baptist Church, Atoka, where his dad, Bob Lane, was pastor for many years. Bob Lane is now pastor of Keeling Baptist Church, Stanton. 

Maridith Lane was reared at Second Baptist Church, Millington (now Crosspointe) where her dad, Phil Wade, was youth pastor. He is now serving in Georgia. 

Lane said he had the benefit of growing up in churches where “missions was front and center” and programs such as Mission Friends, Royal Ambassadors, Vacation Bible School and Bible Drill were emphasized.  [Read more…]

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Filed Under: Featured, News, Tennessee

HOLIDAYS OFFER SPECIAL OPPORTUNITIES FOR LOVE AND CARE

December 2, 2022

By Brandon Porter
Baptist Press

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. — John McCallum knows the pain of struggling with grief and loss during the holiday season. But rather than sinking in sorrow, he’s using it to serve others.

McCallum, senior pastor of First Baptist Hot Springs, makes a point to write a personal letter to everyone in his church just before the holiday season who has endured the loss of a family member since the last season.

“One of our secretaries keeps track for me all year and gives me the list in early November. I write so many notes, I space it out over about two weeks. Then, I mail them all at the same time, so they get them before Thanksgiving,” he told Baptist Press in written comments.

He says the idea came to him while teaching a class on grief a few weeks before the holiday season. [Read more…]

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Filed Under: Featured, News, SBC

PASTORS SAY CHRISTMAS EVE IS MOST-ATTENDED HOLIDAY SERVICE

November 30, 2022

By Aaron Earls
Writer, Lifeway Christian Resources

Jason Harlin, music/young adult and family pastor at Victory Baptist Church leads a combined choir from Victory and Green Hill Church in a Christmas musical. — File photo, B&R

NASHVILLE — The closer it gets to Christmas, the more likely it is church pews will be filled.

Half of U.S. Protestant pastors (48 percent) say a Christmas Eve service is their churches’ largest event during the holiday season, according to a Lifeway Research study. The frequency of the highest attendance events builds up to Christmas Eve and then tapers off into January.

“Christians have many different Christmas traditions, and so do their churches,” said Scott McConnell, executive director of Lifeway Research. “Family and church traditions are most likely to coincide for Christmas Eve services, but many evangelical churches see the highest holiday attendance earlier in December.”

Few pastors point to an event the first week of December or earlier (6 percent) or a service during the second week (10 percent) as their most well-attended. Around a quarter (26 percent) say an event during the third week of the month is top. [Read more…]

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Filed Under: Featured, News, SBC

DRIVE-BY SHOOTING INJURES TWO AT NASHVILLE CHURCH FUNERAL

November 28, 2022

By Diana Chandler
Baptist Press

New Season Church senior pastor Dwayne Lewis (right), shown here with his wife Alexis, was extending a Gospel invitation during a funeral Saturday (Nov. 26) when gunshots could be heard outside. — Screen capture from WZTVScreen capture from WZTV

NASHVILLE — New Season Church senior pastor Dwayne Lewis was inviting mourners to follow Jesus at the funeral of Terriana Johnson when the gun battle began Nov. 26.

The 200 or so mourners were largely unchurched, Lewis told Baptist Press Nov. 28, but they called on the name of the Lord in the melee.

“People were responding for Jesus to help them. They were responding for God to help them,” Lewis said of the mourners. “‘Lord please; Lord help. Jesus, Jesus. Where are my children? Help us God. Please don’t let me get shot.”

Lewis, a part-time church starter strategist with Nashville Baptist Association, didn’t yet know the origin of the shots.

“We didn’t know in the beginning what was happening. Standing in the pulpit and all of the people running this way,” Lewis said, “I didn’t know if (the shooters) were coming in the building. The active shooter training went into effect with our ministers there.” [Read more…]

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Filed Under: Featured, News, Tennessee

SUMMIT 2022: ACTS 2:17 INITIATIVE PROVIDES NEW PLATFORM FOR CHURCHES

November 28, 2022

By Lonnie Wilkey and David Dawson
Baptist and Reflector

Tennessee pastor Mike Dawson, far right, joins with Ryan Michael, center, Marty Shadoan, far left, and his wife, Becky Shadoan, for a time of prayer for the Acts 2:17 initiative during Summit at Bellevue Baptist Church, Cordova. Shadoan is senior pastor at First Baptist Church, Columbia, and Ryan Michael is the student pastor at FBC, Columbia. Dawson, currently serving as transitional interim pastor at Dalewood Baptist Church, Nashville, was senior pastor at FBC, Columbia, from 1996-2004 and is now pastor emeritus. — Photo by James Wilson

CORDOVA —  The Acts 2:17 Initiative was officially launched during the Tuesday afternoon session (Nov. 15) of the annual meeting of the Tennessee Baptist Convention held during The Summit at Bellevue Baptist Church, Cordova.

The Acts 2:17 Initiative will provide Tennessee Baptists across the state the opportunity to speak into future priorities of the state convention. Messengers gathered in small groups to begin the process and 24 other listening sessions are scheduled across Tennessee beginning in January of 2023. See list of meeting locations to the right and visit tnbaptist.org/Acts217 for regular updated information.

Prior to the Summit, Randy C. Davis, president and executive director of the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board, wrote in a Clarity column (see Oct. 26 issue of the Baptist and Reflector) that the initiative “could become the most consequential process in the TBC’s recent history and at its heart is us working together in seeking God’s preferable future for our network of churches. [Read more…]

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Filed Under: Featured, News, Tennessee

LET’S NOT ZOOM PAST THANKSGIVING

November 24, 2022

By Randy C. Davis
President and executive director, Tennessee Baptist Mission Board

It is hard to believe we are just a little more than a month away from Christmas. You’d think it was tomorrow the way stores flipped their Halloween displays from skeletons and zombies to Santa and Frosty. 

But let’s not forget about Thanksgiving. 

Yes, I love Thanksgiving for all the obvious reasons — family, food and football — but I also love it because it is an opportunity to hit pause on a busy and hectic year and remember all for which I have to be thankful. 

Here’s my list and I encourage you to make yours.  [Read more…]

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Filed Under: Featured, Opinion Column

SUMMIT 2022 RECAP: RESOLUTIONS MADE ON CASINO GAMBLING, MORE

November 23, 2022

By Lonnie Wilkey
Editor, Baptist and Reflector

Bob Parikh, of Transformation Ministries of Memphis, speaks about a resolution during the business session at Summit at Bellevue Baptist Church, Cordova. — Photo by James Wilson 

CORDOVA — Messengers to the Tennessee Baptist Convention approved five resolutions, including the traditional resolution of gratitude and a resolution on “Avowing Opposition to Casinos in Tennessee” during last week’s annual meeting at Bellevue Baptist Church.

Most of the resolutions were passed without opposition or debate except for one.

The resolution on casinos noted that during the 2022 session of the Tennessee Legislature, “House Bill 1642 and Senate Bill 1656, before being withdrawn, if passed and signed by the Governor, would have set into motion the process to allow any federally recognized Indian tribe residing on tribal lands held in trust by the United States government with Tennessee to obtain a license from the National Indian Gaming Commission to conduct gaming operations (casinos, bingo, etc.) within Tennessee.”  [Read more…]

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Filed Under: Featured, News, Tennessee

SUMMIT 2022 RECAP: MESSENGERS CONDUCT BUSINESS AT BELLEVUE

November 22, 2022

By Lonnie Wilkey
Editor, Baptist and Reflector

Editor’s note: This article provides highlights of the business sessions. See separate articles on the launch of the Acts 2:17 Initiative, election of officers, messages and more Summit coverage in the coming days at baptistandreflector.org. Additional articles also will be published in the Dec. 7 print issue and online. 

Messengers at Summit raise their ballots during Tuesday’s business session at Bellevue Baptist Church, Cordova.

CORDOVA — Tennessee Baptist Convention messengers adopted a $35 million budget for 2022-23, approved a constitutional amendment on second reading, renewed a missions partnership with Guatemala and dealt with a variety of resolutions among a myriad of business conducted Nov. 15-16 during their annual meeting at Bellevue Baptist Church in Cordova.

The theme of the meeting was “Across the Streets, the States and the Seas.”

Messengers also received a final report from the Tennessee Baptist Sexual Abuse Task Force and received a resource entitled “Ministering Well: Best Practices and Resources Related to Sexual Abuse Prevention and Response.”

The convention drew 843 messengers and 104 visitors from 444 churches. Last year’s annual meeting at Brentwood Baptist Church, Brentwood, drew 943 messengers. The last annual meeting held in West Tennessee (2018, West Jackson Baptist Church, Jackson) drew 934 messengers). [Read more…]

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Filed Under: Featured, News, Tennessee

‘THE HOUSE OF COOPERATION’ IS A BUSY PLACE

November 18, 2022

By Matt Tullos
Special assistant to the executive director

The Southern Baptist Convention is a big house. It’s the largest association of evangelicals in the world. 

The Cooperative Program brings home the bacon! The Cooperative Program is so far reaching, it’s often difficult to wrap our brains around all God is doing through our giving. 

A book could be written about all that has been accomplished here in Tennessee and around the world, but 10 things are all I have room for in this article. When you think about the Cooperative Program, I hope you will remember these wonderful impacts! [Read more…]

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Filed Under: Featured, News, Tennessee

SUMMIT 2022: EVANGELISM  UPDATE, PRESIDENT’S ADDRESS HIGHLIGHT TUESDAY NIGHT

November 16, 2022

By Ann Lovell
Baptist and Reflector correspondent

The choir from First Baptist Church, Lexington, sings during the Tuesday night worship session at Summit. — Photos by James Wilson

CORDOVA — Tennessee leads the Southern Baptist Convention in the ratio of baptisms to population; a Hispanic church plant was awarded the Luke 15 award; and Tennessee Baptist Convention President Clay Hallmark challenged Tennessee Baptists to remember, repent and return to the Father in the President’s message during the Tuesday night session of the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board’s annual Summit, Nov. 15 at Bellevue Baptist Church in Cordova. 

Roc Collins, evangelism specialist with the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board, reported that Tennessee ranked third in the Southern Baptist Convention with 14,185 baptisms behind Florida (18,268) and Texas (18,180). However, in terms of the ratio of baptisms to state population, Tennessee ranked first with a population of 7 million compared to Florida’s 22 million and Texas’s 30 million. [Read more…]

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Filed Under: Featured, News, Tennessee

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