Baptist & Reflector

Telling the Story of Tennessee Baptists Since 1835

TBC CP GIFTS NEAR BUDGET

Baptist and Reflector

FRANKLIN – Tennessee Baptist Convention churches contributed $2,765,956 through the Cooperative Program in May.

For the year to date, Tennessee Baptists have given $19,911,390. After seven months of the 2016-17 fiscal year, gifts are $392,514 or 1.9 percent below what was given at the same time last year and are $505,277 or 2.47 percent below budget needs.

“The Cooperative Program is the great ‘missions mutual fund’ supporting compassion ministry, church planting and revitalization, collegiate ministry, missionary work, and educational and pastor preparation in Tennessee and around the globe,” said Randy C. Davis, president and executive director of the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board.

“I’m very thankful for our Tennessee Baptist churches consistently and sacrificially giving beyond themselves to this cooperative effort among Tennessee and Southern Baptist Great Commission enterprises.”

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BACKYARD KIDS CLUBS EXTEND VBS’ REACH

Editor’s Note: You can listen to Vicki Hulsey and Donna Blaydes discuss Vacation Bible School and Backyard Kids Clubs during Episode 9 of Radio B&R, the official news podcast of the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board.

 

By Lonnie Wilkey
Editor, Baptist and Reflector

FRANKLIN – For those who think Vacation Bible School is outdated and no longer works, think again.

National statistics show that 25 percent of all baptisms reported by Southern Baptist Convention churches are a result of Vacation Bible School, said Vicki Hulsey, childhood specialist for the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board.

“That’s very strong evidence that Vacation Bible School still works and that it’s one of the strongest, if not the strongest, evangelistic arms of the church,” she said. [Read more…]

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BAPTISTS DEDICATE CHURCH SUPPORT CENTER

Baptist and Reflector

Tennessee Baptist ministers surround Randy C. Davis, left center, president of the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board and his wife Jeanne, and William Maxwell, TBMB administrative director and his wife Faith, as they cut the ribbon for the new Church Support Center in Franklin.
— Photos by Corinne Williams

FRANKLIN — A vision cast more than a decade ago became reality on June 3 as Tennessee Baptists cut the ribbon and dedicated their new Church Support Center (CSC).

The CSC will house the offices of the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board, the Tennessee Baptist Foundation, and Tennessee Baptist Adult Homes. For the past three years the TBMB rented office space in Brentwood after selling its facility on Maryland Way in Brentwood in 2013 for approximately $8.75 million.

The new 32,533-square-foot facility on its 2.3 acre site, is the first corporate office building located in the Berry Farms mixed use development adjacent to I-65 in Franklin. [Read more…]

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TN STUDENTS GRADUATE FROM SOUTHERN

SBTS News Office

Southern Seminary President R. Albert Mohler Jr. delivers the address at the May 19 commencement ceremony on the seminary lawn.
-Photo SBTS

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Twenty-two students with ties to Tennessee graduated from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and Boyce College in spring commencement ceremonies.

Southern Seminary conferred degrees to 317 Southern master’s and doctoral students on May 19 and 149 Boyce College students.

Tennessee graduates include: [Read more…]

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TENNESSEE’S BECKY SUMRALL HONORED BY WMU

By Grace Thornton
WMU Writer

Becky Sumrall, right, a Tennessee Baptist who has spent the past 40 years mentoring women from all walks of life, receives this year’s Dellanna West O’Brien Award for Women’s Leadership Development from Vickie Anderson, executive director of the Tennessee Woman’s Missionary Union, at the morning session of the national Woman’s Missionary Union annual meeting in Phoenix June 12. — Photo by Van Payne

PHOENIX — Becky Sumrall, a Tennessee Baptist who has spent the past 40 years mentoring women from all walks of life, is the recipient of this year’s Dellanna West O’Brien Award for Women’s Leadership Development.

The award, presented annually by Woman’s Missionary Union since 1998, comes with a $2,500 grant from WMU Foundation that will go to further Sumrall’s ministry at Begin Anew, Middle Tennessee’s branch of Christian Women’s Job Corps and Christian Men’s Job Corps. [Read more…]

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RECORD AMOUNT RECEIVED FOR GOTM

Baptist and Reflector

FRANKLIN — Tennessee Baptists have set a record for giving through the Golden Offering for Tennessee Missions with $1,731,741 as of June 9.

With nearly three months remaining in the 2016-17 GOTM fiscal year (Sept.1, 2016-Aug. 31, 2017), Tennessee Baptists are within reach ($118,258 or 6.39 percent) of the goal of $1.85 million. GOTM gifts are $95,283 or 5.82 percent above what was given through the same time frame last year. [Read more…]

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TENNESSEE SUED OVER SPOUSAL DEFINITIONS

Baptist and Reflector

NASHVILLE — Four married lesbian couples in Tennessee are fighting a new state law they say denies their parental rights.

The couples, each expecting a baby this year, filed a lawsuit last week against a law mandating that undefined words in state statutes be interpreted to have “natural and ordinary” meanings. Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam signed the measure into law May 5. [Read more…]

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UNUSUAL DR MINISTRY: GOD’S WAREHOUSE

By Connie Davis Bushey
News Editor, Baptist and Reflector

Don Owen, third from right, director of disaster relief, Nolachucky Baptist Association, based in Morristown, presents the keys to a newly purchased truck for the association DR ministries which include God’s Warehouse. From left are Larry Burnett; Nonnie Owen; Dean Haun, pastor, First Baptist Church, Morristown, which leads the Harvest of Israel project supported by the association DR; Doug Derreberry, God’s Warehouse director; Don Owen; and Cindy and Tom Jenkins. Not pictured is David Hawkins, director of missions, Nolachucky Association.

MORRISTOWN — Most people would assume that Don Owen experiences few surprises in ministry. Owen, a semi-retired businessman, has served for 13 years as a Tennessee Baptist Disaster Relief volunteer and in other ministries.

But during the past several years Owen has seen God do some things that are hard to explain and unusual, he said. In fact he resisted them, he admitted.

In about 2011, 18 families in this area lost their homes to fire. During that time a friend called Owen, who is disaster relief director for Nolachucky Baptist Association based here, and asked if he wanted some furniture no longer needed by a Gatlinburg hotel.

Owen hesitated. He didn’t really want to become involved in the used furniture business. But he was aware of an empty auto repair garage and its owner through his many contacts here. Owen has lived here all of his life. The owner agreed to let the Nolachucky Association use it for storage. The space had about 1,500 square feet. [Read more…]

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CHURCH HOLDS UNUSUAL MOTHER’S DAY EVENT

By Connie Davis Bushey
News Editor, Baptist and Reflector

Recording artist Nicole C. Mullen of Nashville sings and dances with children of inmates during the Mother’s Day Celebration of New Vision Baptist Church, Murfreesboro.

MURFREESBORO — The day finally arrived.

About 30 of the women inmates had waited for this occasion, some years. They were being allowed to leave their center for the first time since their incarceration.

One woman inmate had waited for six years for the event so she could be baptized.

Another 30 of the women had waited for about a year for the occasion. They looked forward to it so they could spend time with their families in addition to the regular visitation times at their center. [Read more…]

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SMALL CHURCHES CAN MAKE BIG DIFFERENCE

By Lonnie Wilkey
Editor, Baptist and Reflector

Vonore Baptist Church, Vonore, held a special worship service on Easter Sunday with missions teams around the world viewing via Skype.

VONORE – Former Tennessee Baptist Convention president Doug Sager is the first to admit that he has never been a person to “stay inside the box.”

And neither have most of the churches he served during his 62-year ministry.

Upon retiring as pastor of First Baptist Church, Concord, in Knoxville in April of 2013, Sager began later that year as interim pastor of Vonore Baptist Church, a rural church in Monroe County. [Read more…]

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