April 24, 2025
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Easter 2025 brings historic turnouts to Georgia Baptist churches

A huge outdoor crowd gathers for Easter Sunday service April 20, 2025, at Burnt Hickory Baptist Church in Powder Springs. (Photo/Burnt Hickory Baptist Church via Facebook)
Across Georgia, churches large and small saw filled pews and crowded sanctuaries as record numbers of worshippers gathered to celebrate the resurrection of Christ. From rural towns to urban centers, pastors are reporting historic Easter Sunday turnouts and powerful moments of salvation and baptism.
Trending stories
People attend a Good Friday event at Grayson Park on April 18. (Photo/Yovanni Valladares @goldproductionsatl)
Grayson churches come together for inaugural Good Friday community service
GRAYSON, Ga. — Churches and communities gathered on Good Friday for services across Georgia. For the first time, seven Grayson-area churches assembled Friday night for Good Friday Grayson. A crowd estimated at more than 1000 gathered in Grayson Park for worship, scripture reading, prayer, and messages from pastors and ministry leaders who shared from the seven sayings of Jesus throughout the Gospels during the crucifixion.
Brad Hughes, chairman of the Georgia Baptist Mission Board's Public Affairs Committee and director of governor's office outreach, speaks during a panel discussion with former State Rep. Kevin Cooke and former State Sen. Josh McKoon, center, at a training session at Shorter University in August 2024. (Index/Henry Durand, File)
Georgia Baptists urged to engage in politics as Public Affairs training events launch across the state
SUWANEE, Ga. — The Georgia Baptist Mission Board's Public Affairs Ministry is launching a new round of training events this month, designed to equip pastors and church members with the tools and insights they need to effectively engage in today’s cultural and political landscape. The training sessions, set to run from April through November, will take place in eight cities across the state, beginning April 29 in Dalton.
Women gather on the shores of the lake at Camp Pinnacle during a recent Hispanic women's retreat. (Photo/Georgia Baptist Women)
Hispanic women gather for life-changing weekend in the North Georgia mountains
CLAYTON, Ga. — Nearly 300 women gathered in the scenic north Georgia mountains on a beautiful early spring weekend for a time of fellowship, worship, and renewal. The retreat organized by the Georgia Baptist Hispanic Women’s ministry provided the women with an opportunity to spend time with like-minded sisters, learning from and encouraging each other.
Randy Ellis with the 800-pound gator he harvested. (Photo/courtesy Randy Ellis)
Randy Ellis is a pastor with a heart for people and a taste for adventure
CHATSWORTH, Ga. — Randy Ellis, pastor of First Baptist Church in Chatsworth, is a fisher of men and a hunter of gators. Ellis finally met all regulations specified by the Wildlife Resources Division of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources and qualified to have a hands-on, eye-to-eye hunting adventure in search of an alligator.
The sun rises behind a cover of clouds at Northside Baptist Church in Tifton, Ga. (Index/Henry Durand, File)
Most Protestant pastors confident their churches will be around for at least another decade
BRENTWOOD, Tenn. — Most pastors believe their churches will be around for at least another decade. According to a Lifeway Research study of U.S. Protestant pastors, 94% believe their churches will still exist in 10 years, 4% disagree, and 2% aren’t sure. 
Baptist Life

FBC Peachtree City gathering sparks authentic connections among young adults

Single young adults gather for an event at FBC Peachtree City. (Photo/courtesy Tom Coffan)
PEACHTREE CITY, Ga.  — On a winter evening at First Baptist Church Peachtree City, a group of single adults gathered to forge authentic relationships, and God answered prayer in a big way.

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Dean Inserra described Baptism Sunday 2024 at City Church of Tallahassee, Fla., as incredible. The church baptized 53 people after worship services that Sunday. (Photo/City Church Tallahassee via NAMB)
ALPHARETTA, Ga. (BP) — North Shelby Baptist Church in Birmingham, Ala., celebrated six baptisms last year on Baptism Sunday, the annual Southern Baptist emphasis that urges churches to “fill the tank” and stir the waters, marking new life in Christ.
Dawn Reed
Kelly* just got her license and was so excited. I asked who had been teaching her to drive. Both of her parents, she replied. Then I asked which was the better driver, her mother or her father. (It’s not a terrible question. The truth’s the truth. And, of course, I wasn’t going to tell them.)
Jill Johnson
We just returned from a "bucket list" trip with our very dear friends to Morocco. It was totally amazing! The countryside, landscape, and scenery were some of the prettiest I have ever seen.
The Louisiana Governor's Prayer Breakfast featured a Gospel-centered message by keynote speaker Will Graham, evangelist Billy Graham's grandson and executive vice president of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. (Photo/LGPB via Baptist Message)
BATON ROUGE, La. (LBM) – More than 20 people made decisions to follow Christ at the conclusion of the 61st annual Louisiana Governor’s Prayer Breakfast on April 16.
Georgia
The Cybercrime Center at Europol headquarters in The Hague, Netherlands. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong, File)

New report finds huge increase in cybercrime in Georgia

ATLANTA - Cybercrime is on the rise in Georgia and around the country. Georgia ranked 11th in internet-related complaints last year, up from 13th in 2023, according to the FBI's newly released Internet Crime Report 2024. The potential losses of $420 million represented a 40% increase between 2023 and last year.

Traffic slows on Interstate 75 approaching Atlanta on March 11, 2024. (Index/Henry Durand, File)

Report finds Atlanta-area air pollution worsening

ATLANTA - Metro Atlanta suffers the third-worst levels of ozone pollution, otherwise known as smog, in the Southeast, according to a study released Wednesday by the American Lung Association.
Gov. Brian Kemp signs tort reform legislation at the Capitol on Monday, April 21, 2025. (Photo/Office of the Governor)

Kemp signs tort reform bills

ATLANTA — Gov. Brian Kemp signed two tort reform bills Monday that supporters say should reverse a pattern of excessive jury awards they hold responsible for rising liability insurance premiums that are hurting Georgia businesses’ bottom lines.
Georgia state Sen. Jason Esteves, (D-Atlanta) listens to testimony during a Senate hearing at the Georgia State Capitol on March 6, 2024, in Atlanta. (Steve Schaefer/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP, File)

State Sen. Esteves enters race for governor

ATLANTA – State Sen. Jason Esteves announced Monday that he will run for governor next year. The Atlanta Democrat was elected to the Senate in 2022 and is serving his second term under the Gold Dome. Before that, he spent nearly a decade as a member of the Board of Education for Atlanta Public Schools.

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Nation
President Donald Trump speaks with reporters after signing executive orders in the Oval Office of the White House, Wednesday, April 23, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Trump urges the Russian leader to 'STOP!' after a deadly attack on Kyiv

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Thursday urged Russian leader Vladimir Putin to “STOP!” after a deadly barrage of attacks on Kyiv, Ukraine's capital.

A fire burns on Tuesday, April 22, 2025, near Waretown, N.J. (AP Photo/Chris Szagola)

Evacuation orders lifted as fast-moving New Jersey wildfire burns

BARNEGAT TOWNSHIP, N.J. (AP) — A fast-moving wildfire was burning in New Jersey's Pine Barrens, but officials on Wednesday lifted earlier evacuation orders, and a stretch of a major highway that was closed due to the blaze has reopened.
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks during a news conference on the FDA's intent to phase out the use of petroleum-based synthetic dyes in the nation's food supply, in Washington, Tuesday, April 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

US health officials move to phase out artificial dyes from the food supply

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. health officials on Tuesday said they would phase out petroleum-based artificial colors in the nation's food supply, potentially triggering an ingredients overhaul for scores of brightly hued products on American store shelves.
The Supreme Court in Washington, June 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)

Supreme Court signals support for Maryland parents who object to LGBTQ books in public schools

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court's conservative majority on Tuesday signaled support for the religious rights of parents in Maryland who want to remove their children from elementary school classes using storybooks with LGBTQ characters.

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World
Volunteers handle coffins during a mass funeral for victims of attacks blamed on Fulani herdsmen in Makurdi, Nigeria in 2018. (AP Photo, File)

Bloody April for Christians in Nigeria with death toll surpassing 240

PLATEAU, Nigeria (BP) — More than 240 Christians were massacred in attacks on villages in Plateau and Benue states during Lent and Easter, some as they worshiped, news agencies and religious liberty advocates reported.

A relative wails during the funeral procession of Adil Hussain Shah, a worker who was killed when militants opened fire on a crowd of mainly tourists on Tuesday, at his village Hapatnar, in Indian controlled Kashmir, Wednesday, April 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Dar Yasin)

India suspends water treaty and downgrades ties with Pakistan after deadly Kashmir attack

SRINAGAR, India (AP) — India on Wednesday closed a border crossing, suspended a water-sharing treaty, and downgraded diplomatic ties with rival Pakistan, blaming its neighbor for an attack by militants the previous day that left 26 people dead in the Indian-held portion of Kashmir.
People gather outdoors following an earthquake shock with a preliminary magnitude of 6.2 in Istanbul, Turkey, Wednesday, April 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

A magnitude 6.2 quake shakes Istanbul and injures more than 230 people

ISTANBUL (AP) — An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.2 shook Istanbul and other areas of Turkey on Wednesday, prompting widespread panic and scores of injuries in the city of 16 million people, though there were no immediate reports of serious damage.
Rescuers remove victims after a Russian drone hit a public bus in Marhanets, Dnipropetrovsk region, on Wednesday, April 23, 2025. (Ukrainian Emergency Service via AP)

London talks on ending Russia-Ukraine war pared down as Vance says it's decision time on peace deal

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — A planned meeting Wednesday between top U.S., British, French, and Ukrainian diplomats to push forward a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine was scrapped at the last minute, with U.S. Vice President JD Vance saying negotiations are reaching a moment of truth.

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Perspectives
Students takes notes at a Georgia BCM conference on April 20, 2024, at Maynard Baptist Church in Forsyth. Ga. (Index/Henry Durand, File
Many things run through the minds of college students at the end of the academic year. Exams are over, and summer is here! Families and friends ask when you’ll be back, and you begin counting the weeks and days of relaxing, maybe working, or going on exciting trips. Looking at your calendar, you see six to eight weeks of being away from school and back “home.”
Todd Gaddis
Two preachers stood by the side of the road that separated their churches. They had just finished hammering a hand-made sign into the ground, which read:           The End is Near!           Turn Around Now           Before it’s too Late!
Todd Gray
Ecclesiastes 10:10 reminds us, “If the ax is dull and its edge unsharpened, more strength is needed, but skill will bring success.”  Leadership burnout results from continually giving one’s energy and resources for the well-being of others without taking time to invest in one’s own well-being—or a failure to sharpen one’s ax. 
David Chancey
​As a newer retiree, I’ve checked a few things off my “wish list” of retirement adventures. Taking my wife to Alaska last year, making it to Spring training this year, trying to read more books. I still want to make a trip out West and especially visit the Grand Canyon. I understand it’s a place that takes your breath away.
Worshippers pray on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial during a sunrise Easter service in Washington, March 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Nathan Howard, File)
On this coming Sunday, millions of Christians around the world will celebrate the resurrection of Christ. Atheists will deny it. Agnostics will question it. Others will ignore it.

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Business
A Norfolk Southern freight train passes through Austell, Ga. (Index/Henry Durand, File)

Norfolk Southern's derailment insurance payments provide boost but even without that profits were up

Norfolk Southern's quarterly profits were again inflated by insurance payments related to its disastrous 2023 derailment in eastern Ohio, but even without that, the railroad's profits still grew.

Trucks move past piles of containers stacked at a container terminal port on the Yangtze River in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality on Sunday, April 20, 2025. (Chinatopix Via AP)

China warns countries against making trade deals with the US unfavorable to Beijing

BEIJING (AP) — China on Monday warned other countries against making trade deals with the United States to China’s detriment.
Export vehicles are parked at Daikoku Pier in Yokohama, near Tokyo, Tuesday, April 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)

Japan reports a $63 billion trade surplus with the US as it talks with Trump on tariffs

TOKYO (AP) — Japan recorded a trade deficit in its March-April fiscal year but racked up a surplus with the U.S., the Finance Ministry reported Thursday.
Peeps marshmallow treats move through the manufacturing process at the Just Born factory in Bethlehem, Pa., Thursday, April 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

Go inside the factory where Peeps are made

BETHLEHEM, Pa. (AP) — Love them or hate them, those marshmallow Peeps that come in blindingly bright colors and an array of flavors are inescapable around the Easter holiday.
Trader Drew Cohen works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Monday, April 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

Stocks rally worldwide after Trump eases some of his tariffs on electronics

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks rose worldwide Monday after President Donald Trump relaxed some of his tariffs and as stress from within the U.S. bond market seems to be easing.

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Sports
St. Louis Cardinals' Lars Nootbaar (21) circles the bases after hitting a two-run home run in the third inning against the Atlanta Braves, Tuesday, April 22, 2025, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Colin Hubbard)

Nolan Gorman delivers key hit as Cardinals pull away from Braves 10-4

ATLANTA (AP) — Nolan Gorman hit a tiebreaking 3-run double in the eighth inning and the St. Louis Cardinals snapped a five-game losing streak with a 10-4 win over the Atlanta Braves on Tuesday night.

Atlanta Braves pitcher Spencer Schwellenbach delivers in the first inning against the St. Louis Cardinals, Monday, April 21, 2025, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Colin Hubbard)

Braves rally on Sean Murphy's 3-run homer, then hold off slumping Cardinals 7-6

ATLANTA (AP) — Sean Murphy hit a three-run homer during Atlanta's five-run eighth inning, and the Braves beat the St. Louis Cardinals 7-6 on Monday night for their fourth consecutive victory.
Atlanta Braves' Spencer Strider (99) throws to a Toronto Blue Jays batter in the first inning in Toronto, Wednesday, April 16, 2025. (Jon Blacker/The Canadian Press via AP)

Braves pitcher Spencer Strider strains hamstring, goes on 15-day injured list

ATLANTA (AP) — Atlanta Braves ace Spencer Strider strained his right hamstring on Monday while playing catch and was placed on the 15-day injured list.
Atlanta Braves' Matt Olson (28) celebrates his two-run home run against the Minnesota Twins with teammate Ozzie Albies (1) during the first inning Saturday, April 20, 2025, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/John David Mercer)

Matt Olson and Drake Baldwin hit 2-run homers as Braves beat Twins 6-2 to complete a 3-game sweep

ATLANTA (AP) — Matt Olson and Drake Baldwin hit two-run homers, Grant Holmes allowed only one run and the Atlanta Braves beat the Minnesota Twins 6-2 on Sunday to complete a three-game sweep. Marcell Ozuna also homered off Joe Ryan (1-3), who allowed six runs and eight hits and one walk in five innings.

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