ALLENTOWN, Pa. (BRN) – Burdened for her hometown friends to encounter Jesus, a teenage Amy Velarde dropped her head, folded her hands and prayed for the people of Lehigh Valley.

PUEBLO, Colo. — The Aspen Acres fire increased in size by 2,000 acres on Sunday, July 5, bringing the total to more than 89,000 blackened acres affecting three Southern Baptist churches near the San Isabel National Forest southwest of Pueblo, in Beulah, Rye, and Colorado Citt.

CLEVELAND, Ga. — Truett McConnell University is proud to announce that its Felix Manz School of Music has been granted a full 10-year re-accreditation by the National Association of Schools of Music (NASM), the leading accrediting body for music programs nationwide. The renewal requires no further action from the university and includes a formal commendation, a distinction not automatically extended to every institution.

LITHONIA, Ga. — Luther Rice College and Seminary is pleased to announce the launch of two new graduate degree programs—the Master of Arts in Christian Leadership and the Master of Science in Organizational Leadership—as part of the newly established Waddle School of Leadership. These programs join the Ph.D. in Organizational Leadership to provide a comprehensive educational pathway for current and aspiring leaders.

“You cannot be in here,” the evil spirit said to Mary, “I see a different Spirit around you, a Spirit within you. There is a light around you, and that light is not welcome in this home anymore.”

I was 21 years old when I was blessed to become the pastor of my first church. The parsonage was located approximately 2 miles from the church building on a street with about 15 other homes, most of which were homes of church members. My neighbors were predominantly older people, and they treated me like family.

Much has transpired since Joshua 7 and the defeat at Ai that was caused by the sin of Achan. Chapters 8 through 13 deal with the conquest and division of Canaan, the promised land. These are exciting chapters celebrating the victories given by the hand of God.

NASHVILLE (BP) — Evan Lenow heard the calls in recent years to abolish or defund the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission. And it broke his heart.

LINCOLN, Ark. (BP) — It’s the simple gestures and acts of kindness that sometimes mean the most and can brighten someone’s day — like receiving a handwritten note in the mail.

NASHVILLE (BP) – Southern Baptist efforts to spread the Gospel worldwide are receiving boosts from the Cooperative Program reallocation as well as new partnerships, International Mission Board …

NASHVILLE (BP) – If you want to get Mark Clifton talking, ask him about a church’s impact on its community and beyond. Want to see him find another gear? Call those churches “small.”

NASHVILLE (BP) – Young people are hungry to learn … and they will arrive at a viewpoint to see themselves and the world. It just depends on who takes the lead to teach them and what is allowed to fill that vacuum.

ROME, Ga. — The voices of Georgia Baptist students who gathered at SURGE music camp this summer will soon carry far beyond the campus of Shorter University. The high school choir at the Georgia Baptist Mission Board’s annual music camp recorded songs for a new Semsen Music resource designed to help student choirs and worship ministries across the country and around the world.

SENOIA, Ga. — Children raced across soccer fields at New Hope Baptist Church on Saturday, June 20, chasing goals and medals amid the excitement of a World Cup-themed tournament. But for the church, the Mini Cup of Nations was about more than soccer.

ALPHARETTA, Ga. — The Georgia Baptist Mission Board is building on a record-setting year for SPARK by taking the church-strengthening conferences to six new host sites across the state in 2026. The annual conferences are designed to give pastors, staff members, and lay leaders practical training for ministry in their local churches. This year’s gatherings will begin Aug. 16 at First Baptist Church in Thomson and continue through late September, with conferences scheduled in every region of the state.

EVANS, Ga. - After more than three decades of leading worship, discipling students, serving senior adults, and pointing people to Christ through music and missions, the Rev. Ken Bennett has retired from full-time church ministry, though he says he is not finished serving.

In 1771, a small group of Baptists had gathered for worship by a small creek near the Savannah River. An elderly preacher was on his knees praying when the worship was interrupted by the shout of the arresting officer, “You are my prisoner!” as the heavy hand of the arresting constable hauled the pastor up off his knees.

Baptists in the southern colonies experienced explosive growth during the First Great Awakening. They also began to experience increased persecution from the Anglican (state) Church in the decades before the American Revolution – persecution which convinced many Baptists of the importance of religious liberty and the fight for American independence.

With few exceptions, Baptists across the colonies, especially those who had experienced persecution, supported the American Revolution. Reasons included persecution, other grievances such as taxation without representation, and the tyranny exhibited by the British crown and royal governors. Baptists hoped to gain both political and religious freedom by supporting the war.

Why was the persecution of Baptists more intense in Virginia than in other colonies? How did that persecution lead to religious liberty in America?

The passage of the First Amendment, ratified in 1791, was the end of a long struggle for religious freedom in America.

WASHINGTON (BP) — The Justice Department has released the first draft of a report on religious liberty following a yearlong study ordered by President Donald Trump. The wide-ranging report deals with areas such as public schools, the military, and how faith-based organizations should interact with federal grants.

TALLADEGA, Ala. — More than 200 students, leaders and volunteers from Korean Southern Baptist churches gathered May 26-29 at Shocco Springs Baptist Retreat Center for a youth retreat focused on helping the next generation become rooted in Christ and grounded in Scripture.

RIO DE JANEIRO (BP) — “’Flywheel’ was my favorite,” fans often tell Stephen Kendrick of his and his brother Alex’s 2003 movie-making debut, a small-budget film that began the brothers’ journey of highlighting faith on the big screen.

SWANNANOA, N.C. — Nearly two years after Hurricane Helene devastated communities across western North Carolina, N.C. Baptists on Mission has reached a major milestone in the ongoing rebuild efforts in the region by completing work on its 1,000th home.