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Georgia Baptists hear encouragement, exhortation at Pastors Day at the Capitol

Tim Williams, left, associational mission strategist for the Carrollton Baptist Association, and other Georgia Baptist pastors pray with a group of National Guardsmen during a tour of the Capitol in Atlanta, Feb. 6, 2025. (Index/Henry Durand)
ATLANTA — Georgia Baptist pastors and ministry leaders gathered at the state Capitol on Thursday for a time of prayer, encouragement, and education.
Ladies enjoy arcade games during the 2025 Ministry Wives retreat in Buford, Ga. (GBMB/Krista Roe)
Georgia Baptist ministry wives pampered and encouraged at retreat
BUFORD, Ga. — The Pastor Wellness ministry of the Georgia Baptist Mission Board welcomed the wives of more than 230 ministry leaders to Lanier Islands Legacy Lodge in Buford last month for a retreat designed specifically to cater to their needs. The ladies gathered on Jan. 23-25 to be renewed and fed spiritually, emotionally, and physically.
Youth ministers engage in an event at the Conclave conference in Chattanooga. (Photo/Conclave)
Conclave conference draws nearly 800 participants to Chattanooga
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — Nearly 800 youth ministers and spouses from 21 different states attended this year’s three-day Conclave conference in Chattanooga last month.
Pastor James Amos poses beside the sign for New Providence Baptist Church of Culloden. (Photo/Jay Sanders via New Providence Baptist Church of Culloden)
New Providence Baptist Church of Culloden launches at site of former Culloden Baptist Church
CULLODEN, Ga. — Sounds of praise are echoing again from the former Culloden Baptist Church on Church Street in Culloden. Renamed New Providence Baptist Church of Culloden, the 100-year-old church has reopened and held its first service Sunday, Jan. 26, 2025.
Bill Eastwood speaks to Georgia Baptist Mission Board colleagues in May 2024. (Index/Henry Durand)
Obituary: William 'Bill' Eastwood remembered as a joyful servant by friends, colleagues
MACON, Ga. — Friends and colleagues at the Georgia Baptist Mission Board mourned the loss of William “Bill” Russell Eastwood on Thursday, as news spread of his passing. Eastwood, 73, of Macon, peacefully passed away on Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2025. He was a longtime staffer with the Georgia Baptist Health Foundation and the Georgia Baptist Mission Board.
Students gather for a group photo at Discovery Weekend 2025 in Barnesville, Ga. (Photo/GBMB)
Mission-minded Georgia college students gather at Discovery Weekend 2025
BARNESVILLE, Ga. — About 100 mission-minded students from across Georgia gathered last weekend at First Baptist Barnesville for Discovery Weekend 2025. The event is a chance for those students to narrow down where they are called to go during Send Me Now summer mission opportunities.
Baptist Life

Nearly 400 students from 60 churches gather for music and worship training at REELfest

Students perform during a worship service at REELfest in Jonesboro, Ga., Saturday, Jan. 25, 2025. (GBMB/William Murray)
JONESBORO, Ga. — Close to 400 students and volunteers from 60 churches gathered at First Baptist Church in Jonesboro on Friday and Saturday, Jan. 24-25, for REELfest. The Georgia Baptist Mission Board’s weekend event provides an opportunity for students from 6th grade through college to come together to learn and perform using their musical gifts.
NEW ORLEANS — A sold-out crowd of more than 1,200 women gathered for the Abide Women’s Conference at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary on Friday and Saturday, Jan. 31-Feb. 1, to learn more about the importance of biblical community.
Every year, the U.S. government’s TIP (Trafficking in Persons) office releases their annual report highlighting the state of modern slavery around the world. Each country receives an assessment based on its efforts to end human trafficking within its borders.
DALLAS, Texas — More than 60 pastoral wellness leaders from across the Southern Baptist Convention — representing the four historic boards and all six seminaries of the SBC, along with many local associations and state conventions — gathered at GuideStone to collaborate on identifying and finding solutions to pastors’ top challenges and well-being needs.
PADUCAH, Ky. (KT) — After almost six years from the time its sanctuary was destroyed by a tornado, Mt. Zion Baptist Church moved into a rebuilt sanctuary on Jan. 19, 2025. Pastor Jason Medley said there were numerous times that God providentially worked to make the rebuilding occur, but the highlight was not construction-related.
Georgia

Officials say a suspect is in custody after a police officer in Georgia was fatally shot

ROSWELL, Ga. (AP) — Authorities on Saturday were investigating the fatal shooting of a police officer in Georgia by a suspect who has been taken into custody. A police officer in Roswell responded to a report of a suspicious person in the parking lot of a pickleball club on Friday night, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation said in a news release.

Judge rules Georgia railroad can seize land as landowners vow to fight

ATLANTA (AP) — A judge has ruled that a Georgia railroad can buy land against the will of property owners to build a track, rebuffing a challenge that a libertarian group hoped could make it harder to use eminent domain to take property.

Raffensperger looking to feds to withdraw election lawsuit

ATLANTA – Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger is asking the nation’s new attorney general to withdraw a federal lawsuit challenging election reform legislation the General Assembly passed in 2021.

Both chambers of Georgia General Assembly to focus on protecting women's sports

ATLANTA – Sex and school sports will be a priority for both chambers of Georgia’s General Assembly this year, with House Speaker Jon Burns announcing Tuesday that his caucus will have its own version of legislation banning athletes born male from participating in girls’ and women’s sports.
Nation
Texas death row inmate Steven Lawayne Nelson poses for a photo in a visiting cage at the Texas Department of Criminal Justice Polunsky Unit outside Livingston, Texas, on Dec. 5, 2012. (AP Photo/Michael Graczyk, File)

Convicted killer of Texas pastor executed

Texas executed Steven Nelson on Wednesday, Feb. 5, for the 2011 murder of Clint Dobson, pastor of NorthPointe Baptist Church in Arlington, Texas.

Search underway along Alaska's western coast for plane carrying 10 people

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Rescuers searched Friday for any sign of a plane that went missing while carrying 10 people across Alaska’s Norton Sound south of the Arctic Circle. The Bering Air Caravan, a single-engine turboprop, was heading from Unalakleet to Nome on Thursday afternoon with nine passengers and a pilot, according to Alaska's Department of Public Safety. Authorities were working to determine its last known coordinates.

Southern Baptist pastor Scott Turner confirmed as Trump's HUD secretary

WASHINGTON (AP) — Southern Baptist pastor Scott Turner was confirmed Wednesday as the housing secretary, a role central to President Donald Trump’s domestic agenda at a time when most Americans say the cost of living around necessities is a top concern.

Second type of bird flu detected in US dairy cows

Dairy cattle in Nevada have been infected with a new type of bird flu that's different from the version that has spread in U.S. herds since last year, Agriculture Department officials said Wednesday.
World
Friends and relatives of Ohad Ben Ami and Eli Sharabi, who were taken by Hamas terrorists in the Oct.7, 2023 attack, watch the live broadcast of their release in Gaza, at the Kibbutz Beeri, Israel, Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Maya Alleruzzo)

Hamas terrorists release 3 frail-looking Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners under Gaza ceasefire

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Hamas-led terrorists released three gaunt, frail-looking Israeli hostages and Israel freed nearly 200 Palestinian prisoners Saturday in the latest exchange of a ceasefire that has paused 16 months of war in Gaza.

Released Thai hostages return to Bangkok after being held for over a year by Hamas terrorists

BANGKOK (AP) — Five Thai workers released after being held hostage for over a year by Hamas terrorists in Gaza arrived in Bangkok on Sunday. Sarusak Rumnao, 32, Watchara Sriaoun, 33, Sathian Suwannakham, 35, Pongsak Thaenna, 36, and Bannawat Saethao, 27, were freed on Jan. 30 as part of an exchange arrangement.

Rescuers search for at least 29 people after a landslide in southwest China

BEIJING (AP) — Chinese rescuers searched for at least 29 people after a landslide on Saturday in southwestern Sichuan province buried 10 houses and forced hundreds of residents to evacuate.

Mexico deploys the first of 10,000 National Guard troops to US border after Trump's tariff threat

CIUDAD JUÁREZ, Mexico (AP) — A line of Mexican National Guard and Army trucks rumbled along the border separating Ciudad Juárez and El Paso, Texas, on Wednesday, among the first of 10,000 troops Mexico has sent to its northern frontier following tariff threats by President Donald Trump.
Perspectives
At Send Network, we’re driven by one mission: helping churches plant churches everywhere for everyone. It’s not just what we do—it’s who we are. Together, as a family of churches, we’re joining God in His redemptive work to expand His kingdom in North America and the nations.
Since moving to Tennessee from Dallas, Texas, I always chuckle a bit when folks around Jackson complain about traffic problems. Admittedly, there are seasons when traffic is slower than usual around our little town, but it doesn’t compare to commutes of an hour or more.
It is not unusual for young men who serve on church staffs to reach a point in ministry and leadership development where they start thinking about becoming senior pastor of a church.   Not every senior pastor has his first ministry experience in a church staff position, but many will.
Jesus said, “You are my friends if you do what I command” (John 15:14). All Christians should want to be friends with God. But how good of a friend are we when we sin and grieve the Holy Spirit?
Alcoholism has its claws wrapped tightly around the souls of the small town I grew up in, here in the Amazon region of South America. There are very few people whose lives go untouched by the darkness and destruction it brings. Mario, too, was engulfed in the addiction.
Business
Hiring sign is displayed at a health service center in Chicago, Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

US employers added just 143,000 jobs last month, jobless rate slips to 4%

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. employers added just 143,000 jobs last month, but the jobless rate slipped to 4% to start 2025 and the government revised November and December payrolls higher.

US Postal Service flip-flops on Hong Kong-China packages, lifting a ban imposed a day earlier

HONG KONG (AP) — The U.S. Postal Service is reversing course a day after placing a ban on all inbound mail and packages from China and Hong Kong. The post office announced Tuesday that it would no longer accept parcels from China and Hong Kong after the U.S. imposed an additional 10% tariff on Chinese goods and ended a customs exception that allowed small value parcels to enter the U.S. without paying tax.

Waffle House adds surcharge to eggs as massive bird flu outbreak leads to soaring prices

NEW YORK (AP) — The Waffle House restaurant chain is putting a 50 cent per egg surcharge in place temporarily due to the biggest bird flu outbreak in a decade. The Georgia company said that the resulting egg shortage has led to a dramatic increase in its costs.

Lawsuit alleges first deaths from disastrous 2023 train derailment in Ohio

A lawsuit alleging for the first time that people died because of the disastrous 2023 East Palestine train derailment has been filed ahead of Monday's second anniversary of the toxic crash near the Ohio-Pennsylvania border amid a flurry of new litigation.

Georgia Power wants to keep coal plants alive to meet electricity demand

ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia Power Co. says it wants to keep burning coal to meet what it forecasts as the state’s increasing electrical demand. Georgia’s only private electrical utility says electrical demand is forecast to grow rapidly in the state, with much of the jump coming from power-hungry data centers.
Sports
Jared Allen hugs Antonio Gates as they are introduced into the NFL Hall of Fame Class of 2025, Thursday, Feb. 6, 2025, in New Orleans. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

Antonio Gates, Jared Allen, Eric Allen and Sterling Sharpe make the Pro Football Hall of Fame

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Antonio Gates, Jared Allen, Eric Allen and Sterling Sharpe were voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in the smallest induction class in 20 years following offseason rule changes meant to make it harder to get inducted.

Josh Allen wins NFL Most Valuable Player award

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Josh Allen wanted to leave New Orleans with different hardware. Still, he's happy to be recognized for his accomplishments. Allen edged two-time winner Lamar Jackson for the NFL Most Valuable Player award in the closest race since Matt Ryan beat out Tom Brady in 2016.

SEC distributes average of almost $52.6 million to full-year members for 2023-24 fiscal year

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — The Southeastern Conference distributed an average of almost $52.6 million to the 14 full-year members for the 2023-24 season in a slight increase from the previous year, according to its tax filing.

Edwards and Rudd to be inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Carl Edwards and Ricky Rudd had very little overlap in their respective NASCAR careers. Edwards only entered the elite Cup Series in 2004 — a mere 67 races before Rudd ended his 32-year career — so the two never got a chance to know one another.