Telling the Story of Tennessee Baptists Since 1835
October 22, 2019
David Crutchley, dean of the Carson-Newman University School of Religion, prays a blessing for the hands of nursing student Lisa Peters, of Morristown, during the University’s recent “Blessing of the Hands” ceremony. The event — which was born from The Arnold P. Gold Foundation’s “White Coat Ceremony” — serves as a rite of passage to […]
October 22, 2019
By Ashley Perham Baptist & Reflector NASHVILLE — JAM, a one-day mission event for children, is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year. JAM, which stands for Journey into Adventures in Missions, was started by the Tennessee WMU in 1989. Originally, the event was only for 1st through 6th grade girls in the WMU Girls in […]
October 21, 2019
Union news office JACKSON, Tenn. — Chris Tomlin was 18 years old and had just finished leading worship at a weeklong youth rally. He’d never done anything like that. He hadn’t written any songs and admits that he had done a poor job. At the end of the week, the speaker for the week’s rally […]
October 11, 2019
By David Dawson Baptist and Reflector ddawson@tnbaptist.org DOVER — Melvin Dunaway initially assumed he would only last about seven days at Pleasant Grove Baptist Church in Dover. Turns out, his estimate was a little off — by about 16,500 days. Dunaway recently announced his retirement after serving as Pleasant Grove’s pastor for 45 years — […]
October 11, 2019
Baptist and Reflector Jefferson County Baptist Association, based in Jefferson City, celebrated its 100th anniversary on Sept. 20 during a special service held at Dumplin Baptist Church in New Market, the third oldest church in the eastern half of Tennessee with continuous existence at the same place, under the same name. The association was formed […]
October 10, 2019
TBMB leads seminars on how to reach this easily-distracted demographic By David Dawson Baptist and Reflector ddawson@tnbaptist.org SHELBYVILLE — “Does anyone know what a slo-fie is?” asked Donna Blaydes as she glanced around the classroom filled with adults. After a few moments of mostly blank stares and silence, Blaydes explained that the term, which is […]
October 10, 2019
Baptist and Reflector FRANKLIN — Tennessee Baptist Convention churches gave $2,429,074 through the Cooperative Program in September. For the year-to-date, Tennessee Baptists have given $31,496,630 through the Cooperative Program. The total is $15,166 over the amount given during the same time frame last year, basically no percentage increase.
October 9, 2019
By David Dawson Baptist and Reflector ddawson@tnbaptist.org SHELBYVILLE — While leading a breakout session called “Parenting and Grandparenting Gen Z Kids” at the TBMB’s conference, Debbie Doane revealed 10 common characteristics among Gen Z-ers. Doane then discussed ways in which these characteristics shape relationships with this demographic. By learning more about their world, it becomes […]
October 8, 2019
Baptist and Reflector MOUNT JULIET — Tennessee Baptist Disaster Relief flood recovery teams are still serving at First Baptist Church, Huffman, Texas, in the aftermath of tropical storm Imelda. Volunteers have seen six professions of faith since their work began. Imelda dumped about 40 inches of rain on southeast Texas (from Beaumont to Houston) last […]
October 7, 2019
By Diana Chandler Baptist Press NASHVILLE (BP) — Southern Baptists across Tennessee told Baptist Press they support Gov. Bill Lee’s plea for the state to fast and pray Thursday (Oct. 10). Tennessee Baptist Mission Board President Randy Davis, Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee President Ronnie Floyd, Tennessee pastor and former SBC President Steve Gaines and […]
October 3, 2019
By Sarah Goff Union news office JACKSON — Union University recently welcomed 400 new students to the Jackson campus. The freshmen hail from 35 states and 10 countries and have an average ACT score of 26.2 and GPA of 3.85. “We are thrilled to welcome our bicentennial class of 2023 to campus,” Union President Samuel […]
September 30, 2019
By Sarah Goff Union news office JACKSON — Vishal Gaurav Karmacharya traveled farther than most freshmen to Union University: about 8,000 miles from Kathmandu, Nepal, to Jackson. Vishal and his father, Bishwa, and mother, Ramila, arrived on campus Aug. 14 to move Vishal into his campus apartment. Bishwa and Ramila stayed in Tennessee for a […]