By Connie Davis Bushey
News Editor, Baptist and Reflector

BRENTWOOD — The Tennessee Baptist Convention is becoming more racially and ethnically diverse, says TBC staff members.

But more importantly, about half of the residents of the state — including non-Anglos — need the Lord, said Willie McLaurin and William Burton of the TBC staff.

“Especially with our emphasis on reaching people with the gospel, we should have a focus on another race of people and that is the people who are lost,” said McLaurin, who works with African-American churches across the state.

William Burton, who works with ethnics, agreed. “Our job is not immigration. Our job is salvation. That’s where we need to be focused. …

“We no longer live so much in a church developing field, we’re a missions field,” said Burton, a former missionary to Venezuela with the Southern Baptist International Mission Board. [Read more…]

By Baptist and Reflector

BRENTWOOD — Tennessee Baptist Disaster Relief teams are responding to damage caused last week by ice storms across the state.

Most of the response work took place in East Tennessee and has occurred at the local level, said Mike Overcash, interim Tennessee Baptist Disaster Relief director.

Teams from First Baptist Church, Concord, in Knoxville; Knox County Baptist Association; Nolachucky Baptist Association; Jefferson County Baptist Association; and Big Emory Baptist Association have taken the lead in helping to clear downed trees caused by ice and snow storms, Overcash said.

“The teams in East Tennessee have been working hard,” he added. [Read more…]

By Baptist and Reflector

LEBANON — Cedar Grove Baptist Church here was destroyed by fire early on Feb. 21.

According to news reports the church, which was constituted on May 15, 1813, is the fourth oldest church in Wilson County.

The Lebanon Democrat reported that a church member passed by on Saturday morning, saw the flames, and reported the fire.

Joey Cooper, Wilson Emergency Management Agency director, told the Democrat that no one was inside the church and no injuries were reported. “The structure sadly was a total loss,” he told the paper. [Read more…]

By Baptist and Reflector

BRENTWOOD — Gifts from Tennessee Baptist Convention churches through the Cooperative Program exceed $3 million for the second straight month in January.

TBC churches gave a total of $3,057,818 last month.

The amount is $378,495 or 4.2 percent below what was given at the same time last year.

After three months of the current fiscal year, however, CP gifts are $85,163 or 0.99 percent above budgeted needs.

LifeWay research has recently indicated that Southern Baptist pastors have great confidence in the Cooperative Program, observed Randy C. Davis, TBC executive director/treasurer. “The report also indicated that confidence is growing,” he added.

“The financial giving enterprise that has fueled an aggressive Great Commission strategy of reaching the lost in North America and around the globe started 90 years ago right here in the state of Tennessee.

“And as indicated by their faithful and generous giving, Tennesseans are confident in the fact that we do more together as a network of churches than any single local church could do alone,” he said.

“I would like to once again express deep gratitude to all of our churches for their generous giving through the Cooperative Program to missions and ministries at home and abroad.”

By Baptist and Reflector

BRENTWOOD — Applications are now being received for grants from the Baptist Hospital of East Tennessee Medical Missions Fund.

The Baptist Healthcare System of East Tennessee was begun by Tennessee Baptists soon after the end of World War II. More than $2 million was contributed by 800 churches in 32 counties of East Tennessee. The hospital began service on Nov. 30, 1949.

In 2007, BHSET negotiated a merger with St. Mary’s Hospital in Knoxville in which both entities would be under control of Catholic Health Partners, Inc. In order to memorialize the contribution of the TBC to the healthcare system over the years, the merger agreement provided a total of $2 million to the TBC Executive Board to be used to support medical missions. Several criteria have been developed by the Executive Board for allocating grants. [Read more…]

By Lonnie Wilkey
Editor, Baptist and Reflector

BRENTWOOD — Whereas there may have been a stigma attached to being a bivocational pastor in the past, that’s no longer the case, says Ray Gilder.

Gilder has led bivocational ministries for the Tennessee Baptist Convention since 1995 and also serves as the national coordinator for the Bivocational and Small Church Leadership Network. [Read more…]

By Lonnie Wilkey
Editor, Baptist and Reflector

BRENTWOOD — If actions truly speak louder than words, then Tennessee Baptists are beginning to catch a vision of the importance of the Golden Offering for Tennessee Missions to ministry efforts in the state.

But there’s still a long way to go.

In 2013-14, Tennessee Baptist Convention churches contributed $1,532,060 through the Golden Offering for Tennessee Missions, an increase of 5.41 percent over the prior year (see list of top 10 percent of churches in both total and per capita giving on this page). [Read more…]

By Connie Davis Bushey
News Editor, Baptist and Reflector

MANCHESTER — Even as a seminary-trained minister he “didn’t have a plan” as a young parent on how to follow Proverbs 22:6, admitted Brenton Cox, pastor, First Baptist Church here.

“A lot of parents want to teach their child spiritual truths but they may not know what to do,” he noted. “They are trying to be a Christian influence in their child’s life … but they don’t have a systematic plan.” [Read more…]

By Connie Davis Bushey
News Editor, Baptist and Reflector

CLIFTON — He’s adventuresome, admitted Randall Runions, pastor, First Baptist Church here. One might agree when learning Runions also is a prison chaplain. But this missions trip really stretched him, he admitted.

He traveled 61 hours one way on the Amazon River and a tributary in Brazil to reach a village of the WiWi (pronounced WeeWee) people. [Read more…]