Baptist & Reflector

Telling the Story of Tennessee Baptists Since 1835

PASTOR KEEPS CHURCH INFORMED VIA WEBSITE

By David Dawson
Baptist and Reflector

Pastor Matt Ward of West Cleveland Baptist Church, Cleveland, stands with Bonnie Johnson, one of the Houston homeowners that his team helped following Hurricane Harvey.

CLEVELAND — Matt Ward, pastor of West Cleveland Baptist Church, was briefly out of sight. But he made sure he wasn’t out of mind.

Ward recently returned from a week-long stay in storm-ravaged Houston, where he served as the team leader for one of the Tennessee Baptist Disaster Relief units in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey.

During his stint in Texas, Ward diligently updated his congregation on the details of the relief efforts by posting videos, blogs, and photos on the church’s website.

“One of the most important parts about me going out to the missions field is being able to tell the stories to those who maybe haven’t gone out or are timid about it,” said Ward.  “If you don’t really have a passion for missions, it’s probably because you haven’t really understood what missions is all about.” [Read more…]

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DR TEAM HEADS TO PUERTO RICO

Baptist and Reflector

FRANKLIN — A team of 20 disaster relief volunteers from East Tennessee left on Oct. 9 for Puerto Rico to assist in recovery efforts following Hurricane Maria. The team will be there for two weeks, according to Wes Jones of the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board.

In San Juan, 70 percent of the city is without cell service, and outside the city, cell service is even more scarce. Only around five percent of Puerto Rico has electricity. In these early stages, Southern Baptists who serve in Puerto Rico will be trained disaster relief volunteers. [Read more…]

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PRAYER, DR GIVING TOPS EC ACTIONS

Baptist Press

SBC Executive Committee President and CEO Frank S. Page leads the committee in a special prayer recognizing God’s power to overcome obstacles too great for mankind. Intercessory prayer and special disaster recovery funding topped the committee’s agenda at its Nashville meeting Sept. 18–19, which marked the group’s centennial.
-Photo by Morris Abernathy

NASHVILLE — Intercessory prayer and special disaster recovery funding topped the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee agenda during its  Sept. 18–19 meeting, which marked the group’s centennial.

The Executive Committee unanimously approved a resolution calling Southern Baptists and other Christians to prevailing prayer in the midst of “racial unrest, cataclysmic storms, raging wildfires, political strife, daily shootings in cities across the land, and rampant disregard for the commands and teachings of God’s Word.”

EC President Frank S. Page led those in attendance in a special prayer, recognizing God’s power to overcome obstacles too great for mankind. [Read more…]

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‘LIFE CHANGES FAST IN THE DR WORLD’

Baptist and Reflector

Andrew Frazier of Waterville Baptist Church, Cleveland, cuts up a tree downed by Hurricane Harvey winds.

MOUNT JULIET — “What a difference a few days can make. Life changes fast in the DR world,” observed Wes Jones, disaster relief specialist for the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board.

For the first time Southern Baptist Disaster Relief volunteers are working three major disasters at once — Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria.

Jones reported on each of the operations.

Harvey — “We are closing down our operations in Sugar Land, Texas (Houston suburb) on Saturday, Sept. 23,” Jones said. He noted that chain saw and flood recovery units are still needed. “There is a lot of work to do and will be for some time. It is estimated that some 300,000 homes were affected by the storm,” Jones reported. [Read more…]

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BEST WAYS TO GIVE IN TIMES OF CRISIS

By Diana Chandler
Baptist Press

After the 2004 tsunami in Indonesia, donated clothing rotted in piles on the beach before relief workers burned them, the ashes floating out to sea.
-CBS screen grab

HOUSTON — Mickey Caison has seen it many times in his disaster relief career. Well-meaning folks collect a truckload of food and clothing, drive perhaps hundreds of miles to a disaster zone, but can find no place to deliver the goods.

Deciding “let’s put a trailer on the lot and fill it up with goods to take to Texas, is the most ineffective way of providing support,” Caison told Baptist Press from Houston, where he is coordinating the Southern Baptist Disaster Relief (SBDR) response to Hurricane Harvey’s destruction there. [Read more…]

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DR TEAM MEMBERS HAVE UNBREAKABLE BOND

By David Dawson
Baptist and Reflector

Nancy McClanahan, left, of Vonore Baptist Church, Vonore, and Joyce Curington of Roseberry Baptist Church, Mascot, share a connection as being disaster relief volunteers and widows.

SUGAR LAND, TEXAS — Providing comfort to others in their time of need is the primary mission of the Tennessee Baptist Disaster Relief teams.

In the process, the team members often provide comfort to each other, too.

Following the death of their husbands, longtime DR volunteers Joyce Curington and Nancy McClanahan relied on the compassion of their team members to get them through the difficult periods. [Read more…]

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DR VOLUNTEERS: THE REAL HEROES

By Lonnie Wilkey
Editor, Baptist and Reflector

Last week while I was in Houston with David Dawson of our staff providing coverage of our Tennessee Baptist Disaster Relief volunteers (see stories and photos throughout this issue) Willie Nelson’s song “My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys” came to mind.

With due respect to Willie, I would have to change “cowboys” to DR volunteers. [Read more…]

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HOW YOUR MONEY IS USED

Baptist and Reflector

The ministry effort done by Tennessee Baptist churches through the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board would not be possible without the generous financial giving of Tennessee Baptists. That’s especially true as Tennessee Baptists respond to disaster relief needs such as we’ve seen this year with the Gatlinburg fires and Hurricanes Harvey and Irma. [Read more…]

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VOLUNTEERS MINISTER IN TEXAS

By Lonnie Wilkey
Editor, Baptist and Reflector

Texas Baptist volunteer Alicia Rodriguez translated for Tennessee Baptist Disaster Relief volunteers as they assessed damages in Wharton, Texas. From left are Rodriguez; Brenda Boring, Bob Presnell, Sevier Heights Baptist Church, Knoxville; and David Helton, Rutledge Baptist Church, Rutledge.

SUGAR LAND — With Hurricane Irma and possible other major storms looming in the future, Tennessee Baptist Disaster Relief volunteers kept their focus on victims of Hurricane Harvey last week.

Dozens of Tennessee Baptist DR volunteers served in the Houston area, many of them at  Sugar Land Baptist Church in Sugar Land, a suburb southwest of Houston. [Read more…]

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VOLUNTEERS READY TO RESPOND TO IRMA

Baptist and Reflector

FRANKLIN – Just a week after responding to relief efforts caused by Hurricane Harvey in the Houston area, Tennessee Baptists are gearing up to respond to devastation caused by Hurricane Irma in Florida.

At press time on Monday (Sept. 11), Hurricane Irma had been downgraded to Category 1 status, but still packed wind gusts of about 100 miles per hour and more than a foot of rain in parts of south Florida, according to news reports. An estimated six million homes and business were without power and at least four deaths were reported after the storm struck on Sunday, Sept. 10. [Read more…]

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