November 9, 2025
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Veterans' Day: Georgia soldier survived Vietnam to serve the Lord at home

Stephen Blanton, center, and his team prepare to turn their tools and helicopters over to the South Vietnamese Air Force. (Photo/courtesy Steve Blanton)
RUTLEDGE, Ga. — There was a time when Steven Blanton said, “If I died in Vietnam, I know I would go straight to hell.”
Trending stories
Mark Clifton, senior director of replanting at the North American Mission Board, speaks at the Send Network One Day event at Second Baptist Church in Warner Robins, Ga., on Tuesday, Oct. 28.(Index/Henry Durand)
Send Network One Day urges churches to work together to reach middle and south Georgia
WARNER ROBINS, Ga. — Send Network’s One Day event in Warner Robins brought more than a hundred pastors, planters, and lay leaders to Second Baptist Church on Tuesday, Oct. 28, for encouragement to multiply churches across middle and south Georgia.
A rendering of the Community Impact Center.
Ebenezer Baptist breaks ground on Community Impact Center in Toccoa
TOCCOA, Ga. — Ebenezer Baptist Church of Toccoa has broken ground on a Community Impact Center that it hopes will help the community for years to come. “Ebenezer loves Toccoa, but more importantly, God loves Toccoa and loves the people of Toccoa. This is our gift to Toccoa,” said Ebenezer Missions Pastor Randy Williams.
Steve Browning speaks at the annual meeting of the Georgia Baptist Convention on Nov. 12, 2024, in Statesboro, Ga. (Index/Henry Durand, File)
Steve Browning to be nominated for second term as Georgia Baptist Convention president
ALPHARETTA, Ga. — Chris Renfro, lead pastor of Hope Church Union Hill in Alpharetta, will nominate GBC president Steve Browning for a second term at the annual meeting scheduled for Nov. 9-11 at First Baptist Atlanta. Renfro described Browning as a faithful pastor who leads First Baptist Church Alpharetta “with excellence.”
Trea Brinson, lead pastor of Eagle’s Landing First Baptist Church, with his wife, Cayla, and children Rilynne, Raegan, Reece, and River. (Photo/courtesy Trea Brinson)
Trea Brinson to be nominated for Georgia Baptist Convention vice president
McDONOUGH, Ga. — Trea Brinson, lead pastor of Eagle’s Landing First Baptist Church in McDonough, will be nominated to serve as vice president of the Georgia Baptist Convention at the annual meeting scheduled for Nov. 9-11 at First Baptist Atlanta.
Pastor Paul Ballard poses with his wife, Libbie, and their children and grandchildren. (Photo/courtesy Paul Ballard)
Paul Ballard to be nominated for Georgia Baptist Convention vice president
THOMASVILLE, Ga. — Paul Ballard, pastor of Thomasville First Baptist Church, will be nominated for first vice president of the Georgia Baptist Convention, and the pastor nominating him says Ballard brings both a missionary heartbeat and a proven record of revitalization.
Baptist Life

James Oney to be nominated for Georgia Baptist Convention vice president

James Oney, pastor of Liberty Baptist Church in Fayetteville, with his wife Chantel and their sons Caleb, Israel, Joel, and Timothy. (Photo/courtesy of James Oney)
FAYETTEVILLE, Ga. — James Oney, pastor of Liberty Baptist Church in north Fayetteville, will be nominated for vice president of the Georgia Baptist Convention when messengers gather next week in Atlanta, according to Griffin Gulledge, senior pastor of First Baptist Fayetteville.

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Joanna Abernathy, left, is inducted into the Alpha Gamma Eta – At Large Chapter of Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing. (Photo/Shorter University)
ROME, Ga. — Shorter University’s Brady School of Nursing hosted the 2nd annual Alpha Gamma Eta – At Large Chapter of Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing induction ceremony on Tuesday, Nov. 4, in Brookes Chapel.
A person uses a smart phone in Chicago. (AP Photo, File)
Discipleship is not just about what we believe; it is about what shapes us day after day. In most churches, when we think about discipleship, we picture Bible studies, sermons, small groups, and prayer gatherings. All of those are essential.
Dawn Reed
There were lots of scary things to see on Halloween. Vampires, Ghostface, scary clowns, Michael Myers, and zombies walked the streets as kids raced house to house for sugary stuff sure to cause cavities.
Jill Johnson
Have you ever thought about the phrase "by the way?" I think it is an often-used phrase, so I decided to do some research on it. I looked up the term, and one of the earliest meanings of it is “while going along, in the course of one’s walk or journey.” 
Georgia
The Qcells solar panel plant near Cartersville, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart, File)

South Korean solar firm cuts pay and hours for Georgia workers as US officials detain imports

ATLANTA (AP) — A South Korean solar company says it will temporarily reduce pay and working hours for about 1,000 of its 3,000 employees in Georgia because U.S. customs officials have been detaining imported components needed to make solar panels.

Voters wait in line at a polling place at Legacy Baptist Church in Dallas, Ga., Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025. (Index/Henry Durand)

Democrats take rare statewide election wins

ATLANTA —  Two Democrats swept the only statewide elections on Tuesday’s ballot, upending total Republican control over the five-member Public Service Commission.
Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr, center, speaks to a delegate at the Georgia Republican Convention in Dalton, Ga., Friday, June 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Jeff Amy, File)

Carr joins other attorneys general in call for crackdown on intoxicating hemp products

ATLANTA — While Georgia lawmakers consider new regulations for intoxicating hemp products, Attorney General Chris Carr is joining most of his peers across the country in a call for a federal law that would sweep the products from all store shelves.
Georgia state Rep. Marcus Wiedower, R-Watkinsville, speaks about a bill and state constitutional amendment that would authorize sports betting on March 28, 2024, at the Georgia Capitol in Atlanta (AP Photo/Jeff Amy, File)

State representative Wiedower steps down, creating another vacancy in the General Assembly

ATLANTA — Another Georgia lawmaker is stepping down, bringing to four the number of vacancies in the House and Senate.

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Nation
Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis makes a statement to the media at the front door of the Rowan County Judicial Center in Morehead, Ky., Sept. 14, 2015. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley, File)

Supreme Court weighs appeal to overturn decision legalizing same-sex marriage nationwide

WASHINGTON (AP) — A call to overturn the landmark Supreme Court decision legalizing same-sex marriage nationwide is on the agenda Friday for the justices' closed-door conference.

The sun rises behind planes at Newark Liberty International Airport on Friday, Nov. 7, 2025, in Newark, N.J. (AP Photo/Andres Kudacki)

US airlines cancel 1,000 flights while complying with shutdown order

Anxious travelers across the U.S. felt a bit of relief Friday as airlines mostly stayed on schedule while still cutting more than 1,000 flights, largely because of the government shutdown.
Investigators work at the site of the fatal shooting of house cleaner Maria Florinda Rios Perez De Velasquez, who went to the wrong address in Whitestown, Ind., on Wednesday, Nov. 5, 2025. (WRTV via AP)

House cleaner shot to death on front porch after going to wrong house in Indianapolis suburb

Authorities are considering whether to charge an Indiana homeowner who they say shot and killed a woman working as a house cleaner after she mistakenly went to the wrong address.
Plumes of smoke rise from the area of a UPS cargo plane crash at Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport, on Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)

Officials scour charred site of Kentucky UPS plane crash for victims and answers

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — The grim task of finding victims from the firestorm that followed the crash of a UPS cargo plane in Louisville, Kentucky, entered a third day Thursday as investigators gathered information to determine why the aircraft caught fire and lost an engine on takeoff.

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World
Hamas terrorists and Egyptian workers search for the bodies of Israeli hostages in the Shijaiyah neighborhood of Gaza City, Wednesday, Nov. 5, 2025. (AP Photo)

Israel identifies latest hostage remains returned by Hamas from Gaza as that of a Tanzanian student

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli authorities confirmed Thursday that the remains of a hostage returned the previous day from Gaza are of a Tanzanian agricultural student in Israel who was killed on Oct. 7, 2023, in the Hamas-led terror attack that started the war.

Residents walk along debris along a shoreline after Typhoon Kalmaegi caused devastation in communities at Talisay City, Cebu province, central Philippines, Wednesday, Nov. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Jacqueline Hernandez)

After battering the Philippines, deadly Typhoon Kalmaegi moves toward Vietnam

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. declared a state of emergency on Thursday after Typhoon Kalmaegi left at least 114 people dead and more than 100 missing in central provinces in the deadliest natural disaster to hit the country this year.
A tent camp for displaced Palestinians stretches along Zawaida in the central Gaza Strip on Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025. (AP Photo)

Israel returns bodies of 15 Palestinians to Gaza as exchanges outlined in ceasefire proceed

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Officials at Gaza’s largest functioning hospital said Wednesday that the bodies of 15 more Palestinians were returned from Israel, as exchanges outlined in last month’s ceasefire continued despite allegations of violations.
A resident returns to what remains of his home after Typhoon Kalmaegi devastated communities along the Mananga River in Talisay City, Cebu province, central Philippines, Wednesday, Nov. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Jacqueline Hernandez)

Typhoon Kalmaegi leaves 85 dead, mainly in Philippine province still recovering from deadly quake

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Typhoon Kalmaegi has left at least 85 people dead with 75 others missing in the central Philippines, many in widespread flooding that trapped people on their roofs and swept away cars in a hard-hit province still recovering from a deadly earthquake, officials said Wednesday.

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Perspectives
Adam Dooley
“Do you really believe a fish swallowed Jonah?”  The question came after I preached a chapel service at a “Christian” college.
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp and his wife Marty pose with Mike Griffin, second from right in front row, public affairs representative for the Georgia Baptist Mission Board, during a tour of the Capitol, Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024. (Photo/courtesy Mike Griffin, File)
Once again, we are planning for our annual Christmas prayer tours at the Georgia State Capitol! This is a great opportunity for people to get a close-up look at the Christmas decorations at the State Capitol and participate in a series of prayer tours beginning Dec. 10.
David Chancey
​A cartoon showed a turkey and a fortune teller hovering over the crystal ball. The fortune teller said, “I see you surrounded by family... well, not your family!”
Todd Gaddis
Ask people to name their number one Psalm and Psalm 23 will likely show up at the top of the list. And while I love those comforting words from David, Psalm 16 has long been at the top for me. That said, at this season of my life, Psalm 131 has worked its way into the co-favorite position.
Ralph Fudge
If you are a believer in Jesus Christ, you are by definition a saint. And though I would never call or even think of myself as a saint, I acknowledge the truth of the Apostle Paul’s statement to the Roman believers.

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Business
Robert Arciero works on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Wall Street gains ground amid steady flow of earnings reports, upbeat economic updates

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks rose on Wall Street on Wednesday as more U.S. companies turned in their latest quarterly reports and several encouraging economic updates shed some light on the U.S. economy.

Tylenol pain relief products are shown on a store shelf in Carmel, Ind., Sept. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy, File)

Tylenol, Kleenex, Band-Aid and more put under one roof in $48.7 billion consumer brands deal

Kimberly-Clark is buying Tylenol maker Kenvue in a cash and stock deal worth about $48.7 billion, creating a massive consumer health goods company.
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell speaks at a news conference after the Federal Open Market Committee meeting Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

Federal Reserve cuts key rate yet Powell says future reductions are not locked in

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Reserve cut its key interest rate Wednesday for a second time this year.
A United Parcel Service truck makes deliveries in Pittsburgh on June 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File)

UPS cuts 48,000 jobs in the year to date as its turnaround continues

United Parcel Service posted third-quarter results that handily beat Wall Street's expectations and gave details about its turnaround efforts, including approximately 48,000 job cuts.
New construction homes and apartments are seen surrounding an older home on Friday, July 11, 2025, in Happy Valley, Ore. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane, File)

US home sales accelerated in September to their fastest pace since February as mortgage rates eased

Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes accelerated in September as declining mortgage rates and a pickup in available properties on the market encouraged home shoppers.

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Sports
Dallas Cowboys defensive end Marshawn Kneeland (94) walks off the field after a preseason game against the Baltimore Ravens, Aug. 16, 2025, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Richard W. Rodriguez, File)

Cowboys' Marshawn Kneeland found dead of apparent suicide at 24 after evading officers, police say

FRISCO, Texas (AP) — Police in a Dallas suburb say 24-year-old Dallas Cowboys defensive end Marshawn Kneeland was found dead of an apparent suicide after evading authorities in his vehicle and fleeing the scene of an accident on foot.

Georgia head coach Kirby Smart motions to players on the field during the second half against Florida, Saturday, Nov. 1, 2025, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

No. 5 Georgia visits a much-improved Mississippi State in an all-Bulldog affair

STARKVILLE, Miss. (AP) — Georgia and Mississippi State have a Bulldog mascot in common — and not much else. Georgia coach Kirby Smart’s No. 5 Bulldogs (7-1, 5-1 SEC) have had four consecutive 10-win seasons and seven of eight. He’s brought home two national championships and three Southeastern Conference titles during his tenure.
Ohio State linebacker Arvell Reese, left, celebrates his sack against Penn State with teammate defensive lineman Kenyatta Jackson during the second half Saturday, Nov. 1, 2025, in Columbus, Ohio. (AP Photo/Jay LaPrete)

Ohio State gets top billing in opening College Football Playoff rankings; Indiana, Texas A&M next

The closest thing resembling drama for the first big reveal of this season's College Football Playoff rankings hinged on which undefeated team would receive top billing. Answer: The defending champions at Ohio State.
Atlanta Hawks forward Jalen Johnson (1) drives to the basket during the first half against the Orlando Magic, Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Colin Hubbard)

Hawks roll to 127-112 victory over the Magic

ATLANTA (AP) — Zaccharie Risacher scored 21 points, Nickeil Alexander-Walker had 20, and the Atlanta Hawks beat the Orlando Magic 127-112 on Tuesday night.

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