By Connie Davis Bushey
News Editor, Baptist and Reflector

NEW MARKET — For the 19th year, cars gathered at New Market Baptist Church here to drive through “The Trail to the Empty Tomb.”

This year, about 650 people viewed the presentation on two nights. One night was rained out, but that has only happened one other time over the years, explained J.W. Taylor, pastor. The presentation has been offered in various kinds of weather other than rain, even in snow, but none of the actors have ever been hurt and even gotten sick, reported Becky Finley, director.

Most years about 1,200 people view the Easter presentation. This year about 325 of those who attended the event had never viewed it before.

The Trail to the Empty Tomb includes 11 scenes, beginning with the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem through His ascension into heaven. As cars leave the presentation, they view one final scene not nearly as elaborate as the others. At the exit sits a lawn chair in which lays a person’s clothes. A pair of shoes sit in front of the chair. A sign by the chair reads, “Don’t be left behind,” referring to the rapture. [Read more…]

By Connie Davis Bushey
News Editor, Baptist and Reflector

HERMITAGE — Pastor David Taft sees First Baptist Church here as a “gas station” which serves a few people at a time.

“Our goal is not to get a lot of people in the building, but to get Christ in people. …

“The church cannot be the church if we remove ourselves from the community,” declared Taft.

“If I can’t relate to them, there’s no chance for them to see what Christ is like. … If I don’t know them, then how can I understand them and help them?” he asked.

“What I would say to the church is, ‘Could we just wake up and learn who our neighbor is?’ ”

For First Baptist, Hermitage, its neighbors live in apartment complexes or multi-housing units, explained Taft, the pastor. [Read more…]

By Connie Davis Bushey
News Editor, Baptist and Reflector

FRANKLIN — To reach its neighborhood, which is home to a lot of Hispanics, Walker Memorial Baptist Church here considered starting a Hispanic congregation. Then it learned from the Tennessee Baptist Convention staff of a Baptist Hispanic congregation meeting in its city and God began to work.

What Walker Memorial Baptist and Iglesia Bautista de las Americas (Baptist Church of the Americas) worked out led the Hispanic church to leave a bigger church building where they were meeting to move to Walker Memorial for one reason, the two pastors explained.

Josh Franks, pastor, Walker Memorial, and Nathan Velasquez, pastor, Las Americas, said both congregations will be better able to minister to the Hispanic neighbors of Walker Memorial if they work together.

Simply put, they needed each other. [Read more…]

Phone app encourages Tennessee Baptists to be Great Commission Christians

By Lonnie Wilkey
Editor, Baptist and Reflector

BRENTWOOD — Wake up in the morning, turn on the television or pick up your morning newspaper and you’re immediately reminded of the sin that is rampant in today’s society.

The Tennessee Baptist Convention has launched a new phone application designed to provide an encouraging word to help Tennessee Baptists and other Great Commission Christians to start each day. [Read more…]

320 students make spiritual commitments

By Connie Davis Bushey
News Editor, Baptist and Reflector

NASHVILLE — The Youth Evangelism Conference 2016 drew about 8,330 teens and their sponsors here March 11-12 to worship, laugh at The Skit Guys, and hear challenges.

The YEC is the largest event held by the Tennessee Baptist Convention. The attendance was up about 300 from last year.

A total of 278 students made professions of faith while 42 made other commitments.

For the first time, using the YEC app, many of the students recorded their spiritual commitments on hand-held devices or smart phones. Also with the app, teens and sponsors gave funds to the missions offering. [Read more…]