Baptist & Reflector

Telling the Story of Tennessee Baptists Since 1835

SOUTHERN BAPTIST GIVING TO LOTTIE MOON, ANNIE ARMSTRONG OFFERINGS SURPASSES $278M

IMB and NAMB Staff

NASHVILLE – Southern Baptists continue to prioritize pushing back lostness through missions, marking another strong year of generous giving to the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering® and theAnnie Armstrong Easter Offering®. When the books closed on the SBC’s 2024-25 fiscal year Sept. 30, the Lottie offering totaled $207.2 million, and the Annie offering totaled $71.1 million, the second highest ever — a testament to the unified generosity of Southern Baptists.

The continued faithfulness in giving through both the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering for International Missions and the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering for North American Missions demonstrates Southern Baptists’ unwavering commitment to the Great Commission, SBC missions leaders said. [Read more…]

Facebooktwittermail

TBDR AIDS RECOVERY EFFORTS FOLLOWING EXPLOSION

By David Dawson
Managing editor, Baptist and Reflector

Glynn Jones, chaplain for the DR team from Englewood Baptist Church, passes out food to first responders on Sunday.

BUCKSNORT — With warm words, warm smiles and warm food, Tennessee Baptist Disaster Relief volunteers are aiding the recovery efforts in Hickman County in the aftermath of Friday’s deadly explosion at the Accurate Energetic Systems plant.

Volunteers from Englewood Baptist Church, Jackson, are operating a DR mass feeding trailer on the AES campus, providing meals for first responders and investigators. 

The explosion resulted in at least 16 deaths, according to multiple news outlets, and left behind only remnants of the plant. [Read more…]

Facebooktwittermail

TBDR RESPONDS AFTER DEADLY EXPLOSION

By Baptist and Reflector

Editor’s note: A full story on Tennessee Baptist Disaster Relief efforts in Bucksnort can be found HERE.

Tennessee Baptist Disaster Relief volunteers unload items for the mass feeding unit to minister to the community after Friday’s explosion.

BUCKSNORT — Tennessee Baptist Disaster Relief teams are responding to Friday’s deadly explosion at the Accurate Energetic Systems plant, located near McEwen. TBDR sent a mass feeding unit to the area Friday night, and the team began ministering to the community and feeding first responders.

The deadly explosion resulted in at least 16 deaths, according to multiple news outlets, and left behind only remnants of the plant. The cause of the blast is under investigation.

The manufacturing plant sits on 1,300 acres in Bucksnort, Tenn. News outlets are reporting that the explosion could be felt several miles away.

Check back later at baptistandreflector.org for more coverage. 

Facebooktwittermail

COWELL TO BE NOMINATED FOR TBC WTN REGIONAL VP

Baptist and Reflector

Cowell

FRANKLIN — Ben Cowell, pastor of Brownsville Baptist Church in Brownsville, will be nominated as the Tennessee Baptist Convention’s West Tennessee regional vice president at the annual meeting on Nov. 10-11 at West Jackson Baptist Church.

Chris Garner, lead pastor of Holly Grove Baptist Church in Bells, Tennessee, will nominate Cowell.

“Ben is already representing West Tennessee well,” Garner said. “As senior pastor of the historic Brownsville Baptist Church, he is strategically positioned to serve our Grand Region and lead as a voice from the BlueOval splash zone. He is committed to the work of our TBC network of churches and actively participates in various cohorts for the Acts 2:17 Initiative.

“Ben has a heart for pastors. It’s common to see him praying with or listening to a struggling pastor during gatherings.” [Read more…]

Facebooktwittermail

MARKING MAJOR MILESTONES

By Chris Turner
Editor, Baptist and Reflector

FRANKLIN — The annual gathering of Tennessee Baptists is about one month away and, like last year, will celebrate significant historical milestones.

The Summit, titled “All Aboard: Advancing Together,” will take place Nov. 9-11 at West Jackson Baptist Church, starting with the Sunday evening Tennessee Homecoming worship service and concluding Tuesday night.

Last year, Tennessee Baptists celebrated the 150th anniversary of the Tennessee Baptist Convention. This year focuses on two centennial celebrations. [Read more…]

Facebooktwittermail

TENNESCENE: OCTOBER 8

  • Beulah Baptist Association has partnered with an Eritrean church in northern Ethiopia and is preparing to help launch a church plant in Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa. For several years, the association’s churches have supported Witnesses of Christ International church through providing church rent, funds for new church buildings, solar cookers, blankets, coats, sleeping mats for internally displaced people, audio Bibles and funds for evangelism, discipleship and church planting training. This past August, 11 people came to faith through evangelism training efforts.
Facebooktwittermail

SBC EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE DECLINES TO COUNTERSUE FORMER PRESIDENT HUNT

By Scott Barkley
Baptist Press

Jeff Iorg, SBC president and CEO, responds to a question during the EC’s meeting in Nashville Sept. 23. – BP photo by Brandon Porter

NASHVILLE (BP) – Executive Committee members discussed the potential merits and risks of filing countersuits in cases with fraudulent claims of EC responsibility at their fall meeting on Sept. 23.

The conversation came from a motion at June’s Southern Baptist Convention Annual Meeting that instructed the SBC’s legal counsel to countersue former SBC President Johnny Hunt to recover legal fees incurred defending a suit Hunt filed against the SBC. The EC officers made a recommendation to decline, which the larger EC body affirmed.

The vote wasn’t unanimous, though. EC member Dani Bryson, a Tennessee attorney, came forward prior to the vote to express “some pause that we would pass this through with no discussion.” [Read more…]

Facebooktwittermail

CARSON-NEWMAN UNIVERSITY DEDICATES NEW CHILD DEVELOPMENT LAB

Carson-Newman news office

Carson-Newman University held a dedication and ribbon cutting for its new Child Development Lab. Pictured left to right are: Ondes Webster, C-N director of Physical Plant and Construction manager; Dr. Jeremy J. Buckner, C-N provost; Cassandra Catlett, dean of C-N’s School of Business and Family and Consumer Sciences; C-N President Charles A. Fowler; John Ballinger, Appalachian Construction and Design; Maria Hanes, CDL lead teacher; Tammy Hickle, CDL director; Janet Hayes, C-N Board of Trustees chair; Matt Lay, Appalachian Construction and Design; Abby Hansen, BarberMcMurry Architects ; Robert Key, C-N senior VP for Financial and University Services. – C-N photo

JEFFERSON CITY – Carson-Newman University held a dedication ceremony on Friday, Sept. 19, opening a new chapter for its Child Development Lab (CDL). A new facility on the western edge of campus is home to a program that will continue a tradition of serving as a teacher training facility for Child and Family Studies majors. Along with preparing Carson-Newman students with real world training, the CDL will also continue its long history of providing the surrounding communities with a State of Tennessee Three-Star Early Childhood program for children ages 4-5.

“The Lord has blessed us with Board of Trustee members, leadership and partners who are committed to furthering our Christ-centered mission by making such investments in our future servant-leaders,” said University President Charles A. Fowler. “This dedication certainly celebrates the opening of an exciting new Child Development Lab. But beyond that, it represents opening new doors to the next generation of Carson-Newman students, local pre-school children, and the experiences and memories that await them.” [Read more…]

Facebooktwittermail

IMB TRUSTEES APPOINT 54 MISSIONARIES, FUELING GREAT COMMISSION TASK

By IMB Staff
International Mission Board news room

IMB President Paul Chitwood honors Gayle Stanley, his administrative assistant who is retiring from IMB with 43 years of service, during trustees’ meeting near Richmond, Va., as trustee chair Carol Pfeiffer looks on. – IMB Photo

CHESTER, Va.—International Mission Board trustees approved 54 fully funded missionaries for appointment during their Sept. 24-25 meeting near Richmond, Virginia. The missionaries approved for appointment were recognized during a Sending Celebration on Wednesday evening at Ironbridge Baptist Church in Chester, Virginia.

Willie Smith, second vice chair, opened Thursday’s plenary session in prayer. This meeting concluded the two-day gathering of trustees during which the board appointed missionaries, remembered the lives of former missionaries and staff who died in 2024, and welcomed new trustees. Carol Pfeiffer, elected chair of the board in May, presided over the meeting.

The plenary session included the approval of a total balanced budget for 2025-26 of $314,066,700. [Read more…]

Facebooktwittermail

SBC EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE TAKES UP MESSENGER MOTIONS

By Laura Erlanson, Scott Barkley
Baptist Press

The SBC Executive Committee met Sept. 22-23 at the BNA Hilton in Nashville. – BP by Brandon Porter

NASHVILLE (BP) – Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee members addressed referrals from messengers to the 2025 SBC Annual Meeting, heard reports and celebrated the highest Lifeway summer camps’ missions offering in eight years at their fall meeting, Sept. 22-23.

One messenger suggestion adopted by the EC was the formation of a task force to study resources for special needs ministry available to Southern Baptist churches. A related motion to add a Disability Sunday to the SBC calendar was formally declined the motion but with the request for the newly formed task force to consider the suggestion.

At the recommendation of EC officers, members declined to file a countersuit against former SBC President Johnny Hunt. A motion to attempt to recover legal fees incurred defending a suit brought by Hunt in 2023 was referred to the EC in June. The decision was one of the few bringing discussion in Tuesday morning’s (Sept. 23) EC plenary session. [Read more…]

Facebooktwittermail

Address

4017 Rural Plains Circle
Franklin, TN 37064

Contact Information

Mail: Baptist & Reflector, P.O. Box 682789, Franklin, TN 37068
Physical Address: 4017 Rural Plains Circle, Franklin, TN 37064
Email: bandr@tnbaptist.org
Phone: 615-371-2003

2025 © The Baptist and Reflector. All Right Reserved.