October 14, 2026
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Georgia Baptist Disaster Relief deploys to Florida after Hurricane Isaias

Georgia Baptist Disaster Relief volunteers gather outside a trailer in Florida. (Photo/GBDR)
ALPHARETTA, Ga. — About 50 Georgia Baptist Disaster Relief volunteers are working in the Florida Panhandle after Hurricane Isaias brought destructive winds, flooding, and widespread damage to the region.
Trending stories
Members, families, and friends gather at the groundbreaking for a 2,400-seat worship center. (Photo/Burnt Hickory Baptist Church)
Burnt Hickory breaks ground on 2,400-seat worship center
POWDER SPRINGS, Ga. — Burnt Hickory Baptist Church broke ground Sunday, Oct. 11, on a 2,400-seat worship center as part of its “All In” initiative, a project church leaders say will provide needed space for a congregation that is already holding five Sunday morning worship services in two auditoriums.
Evangelism conference to equip Georgia Baptists with practical tools for reaching the lost
WARNER ROBINS, Ga. — Georgia Baptists will be encouraged and equipped to maximize their evangelism efforts during a one-day conference on Monday, Nov. 9, at Second Baptist Church in Warner Robins, just before the Georgia Baptist Convention Annual Meeting.
(Photo/Fellowship BC)
Fellowship Baptist sees attendance grow as young people catch fire for the Lord
GIBSON, Ga. — Fellowship Baptist Church in Gibson has more than doubled its Sunday attendance in the past year, and Pastor Jonathan Rosier says much of the spiritual energy is coming from teenagers who returned from summer camp determined to share the gospel. The 226-year-old church has grown from about 85 on Sunday mornings a year ago to an average of 220.
Men pray during the What's at Stake? event at Tabernacle Baptist Church in Vidalia, Ga., Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026. (Index/Henry Durand)
Vidalia men’s gathering leads to professions of faith, new discipleship efforts
VIDALIA, Ga. — Eight men indicated they had trusted Christ as Savior in connection with a men’s gathering at Tabernacle Baptist Church on Thursday, Oct. 8, while others committed to renewed discipleship and organizers began planning a follow-up revival.
The groundbreaking at Johnson Ferry Baptist Church with, from left, Lucy Winters, Hudson Bruce, JoAnn Birrell, Steve Aslinger, and Pastor Clay Smith.
Johnson Ferry Baptist Church launches major ministry plan that includes a new sanctuary
MARIETTA, Ga. — Johnson Ferry Baptist Church broke ground Oct. 7 on a major campus expansion that includes a new 2,500-seat worship center and is part of an $84.3 million Forward Together Vision aimed at making more room for worship, community, the next generation, and gospel outreach.
Baptist Life

Disaster Relief volunteers from at least 6 states helping in wake of Isaias

Florida Baptist Disaster Relief tents are set up in the parking lot of Hillcrest Baptist Church in Pensacola, Fla.
DESTIN, Fla. (BP) — Southern Baptist Disaster Relief volunteers are set up in several locations throughout the western Panhandle of Florida and southeast Alabama after Hurricane Isaias brought widespread destruction to the region.

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Across Nigeria founder Brad Brandon, right, shares the gospel with a Boko Haram terrorist, whose face is obscured. (Photo/Across Nigeria via Baptist Press)
MAIDUGURI, Nigeria (BP) — The knock on the door came during the closing ceremony of a 2025 training conference for pastors of underground churches in Maiduguri, Nigeria, the birthplace of Boko Haram. At the door were six unarmed Boko Haram terrorists, identifiable by their green tunics.
NASHVILLE — As the books closed on the latest fiscal year, receipts for the two Southern Baptist national annual missions offerings underscored the value Southern Baptist churches place on reaching the world with the gospel.
Scott Pace receives a copy of a resolution of appreciation from Andy Taylor, right, chairman of Southeastern’s board of trustees, during Pace’s inauguration as the school’s seventh president on Tuesday, Oct. 13. Danny Akin, the seminary’s president emeritus, applauds. (Southeastern Seminary/Emeri Glen)
WAKE FOREST, N.C. — Honoring Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary’s heritage and pledging to keep the Great Commission at its center, Scott Pace was formally inaugurated and installed as the school’s president during a special service held on campus Tuesday, Oct. 13.
The courts may still be deciding the legal status of political endorsements in churches, but most pastors have already made their decision. A Lifeway Research study found 93% of U.S. Protestant pastors say they don’t plan to endorse candidates for public office during a worship service, despite the IRS saying it will allow churches to do so without losing their tax-exempt status.
Georgia
A roller coaster is shown at Six Flags over Georgia on Monday, Oct. 12, 2026 in Austell, Ga. (AP Photo/Emilie Megnien)

Man killed on a Six Flags roller coaster was thrown from the ride and hit other patrons, police say

MABLETON, Ga. (AP) — A 42-year-old man killed while riding a roller coaster at Six Flags Over Georgia was thrown from his seat and struck other patrons before landing below the ride, police said Tuesday.

A pedestrian walks through the Georgia Tech campus as the downtown skyline stands in the background on March 11, 2016, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/David Goldman, File)

Georgia Tech to get temporary leader amid search for Cabrera successor

ATLANTA — An executive vice president at Georgia Tech will step temporarily into the top job amid a search for a permanent president.
The Goliath roller coaster at Six Flags Over Georgia. (Photo/Wikicommons)

One person is dead, several others injured in incident involving Six Flags roller coaster in Georgia

AUSTELL, Ga. (AP) — One person has died, and several others were injured in an incident involving a Six Flags roller coaster Monday afternoon in Georgia, according to police.
Kris Williams Carroll, director of the Caretta Research Project, holds three loggerhead hatchlings found during the excavation of a nest on Wassaw Island, Ga., July 18, 2026. (Justin Taylor/The Current GA/CatchLight/Report for America via AP)

Peek inside Georgia’s record-setting sea turtle nesting season

Loggerhead sea turtles laid a record 4,292 nests on Georgia beaches this year, a hard-won rebound from a low of 358 nests in 2004.

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Nation
The U.S. Department of Justice logo adorns a podium, May 4, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, File)

Justice Department threatens California with legal action over claim of noncitizens on voter rolls

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Justice Department has threatened California with possible legal action over what it says are noncitizens believed to have received mail ballots for next month’s midterm elections.

A fan puts on sunscreen prior to the World Cup Group G soccer match between Belgium and Egypt in Seattle on June 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson, File)

The first new sunscreen type in 25 years has arrived on US store shelves

WASHINGTON (AP) — For the first time in more than a quarter-century, Americans have a new option when shopping for sunscreen: a skin-protecting chemical that’s long been a go-to option in Europe and other parts of the world.
Demonstrators march from the Washington Monument to the White House during a "Stop Sexual Violence" protest in Washington, Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

Cornell suspends fraternity parties, gives state police role in investigating campus assault reports

Cornell University is suspending parties and other social events at fraternity houses for the rest of the academic year and will give the New York State Police a role in investigating sex crimes on campus, university officials announced Tuesday, amid mounting outrage over its handling of allegations that a female student was sexually assaulted at a fraternity house in 2024.
A woman rests from cleaning up the effects of Tropical Storm Rachel along the Alamitos Peninsula, Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026, in Long Beach, Calif. (AP Photo/Jill Connelly)

Isaias moves north into Appalachians and mid-Atlantic

PENSACOLA, Fla. (AP) — People in the Florida Panhandle and southern Alabama cleaned up after Hurricane Isaias swept through as the storm's remnants caused flooding in North Carolina on Sunday, while powerful Pacific Ocean waves stirred up by Rachel, a former tropical storm, battered the coast of Southern California.

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World
Birds fly over a billboard advertisement for Saudi Arabia's state-owned oil giant Aramco in Jiddah, Saudi Arabia, Nov. 14, 2019. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil, File)

Iran-backed Houthis strike Saudi oil company Aramco's headquarters, officials say

CAIRO (AP) — Iran-backed Houthi rebels hit the headquarters of the Saudi state-owned oil company Aramco in an overnight strike, two regional officials said Wednesday, damaging the offices of the firm’s chief executive and other top officials.

A mobile lab is set up to test for Ebola virus in Butembo, Congo, Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Sebastien Kitsa Musayi)

Congo's confirmed Ebola cases exceed 9,000 as containment efforts falter

BUNIA, Congo (AP) — Confirmed cases in Congo’s Ebola outbreak have surpassed 9,000 as efforts to contain transmission falter, according to health ministry data released Tuesday.
A truck loaded with firewood drives through the Al-Basateen neighborhood in Aden, Yemen, Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Abdulnasser Alseddik)

Saudi-led coalition struck oil facilities west of Yemen’s capital, Houthi-run broadcaster says

CAIRO (AP) — A coalition of forces in Yemen led by Saudi Arabia carried out new airstrikes Tuesday on the Houthi rebel-held Yemeni capital of Sanaa, the Houthi-run broadcaster Al Masirah and residents said.
Director General of MI5 Ken McCallum speaks at Thames House, the headquarters of the UK's Security Service in London, Tuesday Oct. 13, 2026. (Jonathan Brady/PA via AP, Pool)

MI5 chief says Iran is targeting military sites and suspected plot at RAF Fairford is 'not unique’

LONDON (AP) — Iran is trying to hit military sites in Britain, and the suspected plot to attack a U.S.-run military air base in September is “not unique," the head of the MI5 spy agency said Tuesday, as he warned that both Tehran and Moscow are expanding their attacks against the U.K.

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Perspectives
Wade Lott
When I was in high school in the mid-1980s, I took a class that taught me how to use a typewriter. One of the first things we learned was the importance of margins. Margins gave definition to the page, provided breathing room for the reader, and framed the words so the page looked balanced and organized. Without margins, the page would feel crowded and chaotic.
Jill Johnson
Several years ago, one of my granddaughters came home with a questionnaire she had filled out for something at school. One of the questions was “What are you afraid of?” Her answer was, “Well, basically I’m afraid of everything.”
Ricky Thrasher
The Georgia Baptist Mission Board’s Annual Meeting will be held November 9–10 at Second Baptist Church in Warner Robins. We look forward to gathering for a meaningful time of business, worship, fellowship, and encouragement.
Mike Griffin
As we think upon the subject of Christians and politics, it may seem odd to many that we would put the two together. Politics is seen in such a negative light these days. The reaction to hearing the two mentioned together often elicits the same response as hearing Christianity coupled with pornography or drug use.
Todd Gray
I remember hearing Paul Chitwood pass along leadership advice he had received from General Colin Powell, who advised leaders to do their job, take care of their troops, and not worry about their next job. That is great advice for all leaders. 

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Business
The Social Security Administration office is seen in Mount Prospect, Ill., Oct. 12, 2022. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh, File)

Social Security recipients to get 3.6% cost of living boost, an average of $75 per month

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Social Security Administration projected Wednesday that the annual cost-of-living adjustment for older adults and people with disabilities will go up by 3.6% beginning in 2027, with some recipients complaining that is not enough to offset soaring prices.

(Photo/NOBTS)

New Orleans Seminary partners with The Worship Initiative and SBC Worship for night of worship celebrating Center for Worship Studies

NEW ORLEANS — New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary hosted a worship night Oct. 6 in partnership with The Worship Initiative and SBC Worship. The event was held in celebration of the ribbon-cutting for the seminary's new Center for Worship Studies, which took place earlier in the day.  
The U.S. Department of Agriculture seal is seen on a podium during a news conference in Washington on July 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File)

More than 160,000 pounds of meat bearing false USDA inspection labels recalled

NEW YORK (AP) — More than 83 tons of meat are being recalled across the U.S. because the products were not properly inspected by federal authorities and were shipped out with falsified inspection stickers, the Department of Agriculture said.
A hiring sign is displayed at a grocery store, in Schaumburg, Ill., Wednesday, Sept. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Claims for unemployment benefits drop to 197,000, the lowest since mid-July as layoffs remain rare

WASHINGTON (AP) — Fewer people applied for U.S. unemployment benefits last week, as U.S. jobless claims remain at historically low levels and most Americans enjoy job security.

Major tire company to expand in northwest Georgia

ATLANTA — A global leader in tire production will invest $1.2 billion to expand in Georgia, bringing 1,000 jobs by 2033, according to Gov. Brian Kemp’s office.

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Sports
Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr. throws a pass during the first half against the Baltimore Ravens, Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Penix expected to start at quarterback for Falcons against Bears after suffering rib injury in loss

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. (AP) — Quarterback Michael Penix Jr. is on track to start for the Atlanta Falcons Sunday against the Chicago Bears after leaving last week's loss to Baltimore with a rib injury.

Atlanta Hawks forward Jalen Johnson drives against Memphis Grizzlies center Isaiah Stewart (28) in the second half of a preseason game, Monday, Oct. 5, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

A revamped Hawks team chases a bigger leap after a first-round playoff exit

The Atlanta Hawks are gearing up for a promising season with a strong core lineup. Key returning players include Jalen Johnson and Onyeka Okongwu, who helped secure a playoff spot last season. Johnson's growth is crucial, especially after leading the team in assists, rebounding, and scoring in the playoffs.
Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr. walks off the field after losing to the Baltimore Ravens, Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Falcons' Michael Penix Jr. sustains rib injury in 4th quarter in OT loss to Ravens

ATLANTA (AP) — Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr. sustained a rib injury when he was sacked by Ravens linebacker Tavius Robinson late in the fourth quarter of Atlanta's 30-23 overtime loss to Baltimore on Sunday night and was unable to finish the game.
Baltimore Ravens quarterback Tyler Huntley (5) runs from Atlanta Falcons safety Jessie Bates III (3) during the first half Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Erik S. Lesser)

Huntley leads late TD drive to force OT and then scores on 1-yard run as Ravens beat Falcons 30-23

TLANTA (AP) — With Tyler Huntley filling in at quarterback, the Baltimore Ravens were on Snoop patrol. When “Snoop” Huntley is leading the offense, the Ravens don't feel like a backup is on the field.

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