church revitalization Archives - Page 3 of 6

FROM CALIFORNIA TO TENNESSEE VIA TEXAS

October 15, 2018

Non-typical Southern Baptist pastor leads church to impact community

By Lonnie Wilkey
Editor, Baptist and Reflector
lwilkey@tnbaptist.org

Pastor Donnie De La Cruz leads a Bible study between skateboarding sessions at Dumplin Baptist Church in New Market.

NEW MARKET — Donnie De La Cruz would be the first person to tell you that he’s not your typical, everyday Baptist preacher in East Tennessee. And, most people who know him would agree wholeheartedly.

But, those who know him well would also say he’s totally sold out on telling lost people about the love of Jesus Christ and leading Dumplin Baptist Church in New Market to reach its community for Christ.

What makes De La Cruz different from most of his colleagues in Jefferson County Baptist Association? [Read more…]

TEN THINGS WE DON’T WANT TO SAY ABOUT THE CP

October 11, 2018

By Matt Tullos
Stewardship Development Specialist, TBMB

In the Go Fund Me era, it’s easy to minimize the Cooperative Program. We get so caught up in the daily grind of ministry and we forget all the things that make the Cooperative Program shine so brightly in a dark world. It begs the question, “What would your church, Tennessee, and the world look like without CP?” Here are a few uncomfortable realities.

Without the Cooperative Program, we would be saying: [Read more…]

BARRON RETURNS TO LEAD BLENDED CONGREGATION

September 3, 2018

By Lonnie Wilkey
Editor, Baptist and Reflector
lwilkey@tnbaptist.org

Lisa and Ridley Barron

FRANKLIN — In early 2004, life was going great for Ridley Barron, former youth minister at Forest Hills Baptist Church in Nashville. Four years earlier he moved to Douglas, Ga., to plant a new church in the southeast portion of the state, and the church was taking root.

On Good Friday of 2004, Barron’s world was rocked forever. A tragic car accident took the life of his wife Sarah Ellen. His 17-month-old son survived the accident but died following a hospital-induced medication error, leaving Barron with two young children. [Read more…]

MATCH ORCHESTRATED BY GOD

August 30, 2018

By Lonnie Wilkey
Editor, Baptist and Reflector
lwilkey@tnbaptist.org

CHAPEL HILL — Chapel Hill Community Baptist Church was a congregation seeking its identity and without a pastor. The Church at College Grove was a new church plant with a pastor looking for a place to meet.

The two congregations came together in a way that only God could orchestrate. [Read more…]

THE IMAGE OF THE POTTER’S WHEEL

August 28, 2018

By Phil Young
Director of Missions, Knox County Association of Baptists

I have always been fascinated by the image of a potter’s wheel. Something about the way a master potter takes a lump of clay and molds it into a beautiful and useful vessel appeals to me. I think it may be that each piece of pottery is unique. Because it is not “mass-produced” on a machine, no two pieces are the same. Each piece is carefully shaped into what the potter desires it to be. [Read more…]

ONCE ON THE VERGE OF CLOSING, RIVER ROCK IS NOW ROLLING

August 24, 2018

By David Dawson
Baptist and Reflector
ddawson@tnbaptist.org

Photo: River Rock Facebook page

MURFREESBORO — It’s been quite a journey for River Rock Baptist Church in Murfreesboro: In the past decade, the church has gone from survival to revival.

Under the leadership of pastor Don Herron — along with the help of the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board’s revitalization team and abundant praying — the church has recovered from its darkest days and is now once again making an impact in its community.

Sandi Kirkwood, a member at River Rock, believes the transformation can be attributed to one simple concept — love. [Read more…]

‘LORD, THERE MUST BE MORE TO IT THAN THIS!’

April 19, 2018

By Phil Young
Director of Missions, Knox County Association of Baptists

“Lord, there must be more to it than this!”

I uttered the words in frustration. I was the pastor of a good church with good people and good resources, and yet it seemed that we had little impact on the lives of people in our city. [Read more…]

NEW NAME, NEW VISION, RENEWED PURPOSE

February 12, 2018

By Janice Backer
Contributing Writer

The word “replant” according to Webster’s dictionary means: to plant again or anew. For Magna View Baptist Church — now Grace Point Baptist — it means a fresh start.

Although the building and property will remain in the same location east of Jefferson City (1170 East Highway 11E), the congregation has voted to replant the church — with a new name, a new vision and a rededication of its purpose to share the gospel of Christ and make disciples. [Read more…]

REVITALIZATION: THREE-PRONGED LEADERSHIP

February 9, 2018

Scott Brown
Pastor, First Baptist Church, Waverly

The call to be a church revitalizer is a hard call and, although church revitalizers can come in many varieties and skill sets, there are three qualities we must seek to show in our leadership among God’s people as we are working toward revitalization.

Ecclesiastes tells us, “a threefold cord is not quickly broken.” Likewise, a pastor who emphasizes the following three roles in his ministry will be more likely to find his leadership stronger, durable, and enduring. [Read more…]

HUNT: STRONG LEADERS NEEDED FOR REVITALIZATION

October 17, 2017

By David Dawson
Baptist and Reflector

Johnny Hunt, pastor of First Baptist Church in Woodstock, Ga., and former president of the Southern Baptist Convention, recently hosted a seminar at West Jackson Baptist.
-Photo by Bill Bangham

JACKSON — Addressing a group of more than 100 pastors and church leaders at West Jackson Baptist Church, former SBC president Johnny Hunt delivered some disturbing statistics in the opening few minutes of the “Moving Beyond” conference on Sept. 26.

“We’re losing 17 churches per week,” said Hunt, the senior pastor at First Baptist Church, Woodstock, Ga. “That’s 900 churches per year.” [Read more…]

Non-typical Southern Baptist pastor leads church to impact community

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