STATESBORO, Ga. — W. Thomas Hammond, Jr., executive director of the Georgia Baptist Mission Board, encouraged messengers at the organization’s annual meeting, telling them on Tuesday that they are “leading the way” in the state. Hammond outlined several ways in which Georgia Baptists are out in front, serving pastors, supporting churches, and reaching the state with the gospel of Jesus Christ.

STATESBORO, Ga. — Georgia Baptist messengers at the annual meeting overwhelmingly approved updates to the convention’s 200-year-old governing documents on Tuesday. The amendments to the bylaws were provisionally approved at last year’s meeting.

STATESBORO, Ga. — Messengers to the annual meeting of the Georgia Baptist Convention elected new officers Tuesday to lead them in the coming year. Steve Browning, lead pastor of First Baptist Church Alpharetta, was elected as president.

STATESBORO, Ga. — Georgia Baptists expressed their support for passage of a religious freedom restoration act in the state, as well as affirming the right to life of every human being.

Apparently, our dog Dixie is afraid of the vacuum cleaner. I ran it before church last Sunday morning. Because she was scared, she had a conniption, barking loudly and lunging at it as it moved. Since she rarely barks, the sudden outburst was unexpected. I kept saying, “It’s OK. It’s OK,” but she refused to believe me.

WACO, Texas — Messengers to Texas Baptists’ annual meeting soundly defeated a motion affirming the 2000 Baptist Faith & Message, the Southern Baptist Convention statement of faith that limits the role of pastor to men.

STATESBORO, Ga. — Georgia Baptists gathered Monday for the start of the 202nd Annual Meeting of the Georgia Baptist Convention at First Baptist Statesboro.

I watch the local news every evening on television. Following the broadcast, the game show “Family Feud” comes on. It is a mindless routine and mildly entertaining to try to guess the answers. One funny thing about watching from a recliner is that no matter how loudly I express my responses, the contestants never seem to hear me or comply.

Acts 26 exemplifies for modern believers how to share the gospel even in difficult circumstances. This chapter includes one of three accounts of Paul’s testimony within the Book of Acts.

GAITHERSBURG, Md. — It started out as an average Sunday evening at Tri-County Baptist Church on Sunday, Nov. 3. Seventeen preschool and elementary-aged kids in the church’s “Sunday Night BLAST” program were busy in their classes. But then everything changed quickly.

STATESBORO, Ga. — W. Thomas Hammond, Jr., executive director of the Georgia Baptist Mission Board, and Kevin Ezell, president of the North American Mission Board, announced a new partnership, Send Network Georgia, on Sunday night with the aim of planting more churches in Georgia.

STATESBORO, Ga. — A trio of speakers exhorted Georgia Baptists to ‘Answer the Call” at the 2024 Preaching Conference at First Baptist Statesboro on Monday. That call, listeners were told, takes different forms.

STATESBORO, Ga. — What does it look like to ‘Love Your Neighbor?’ For First Baptist Statesboro, one way to love their Korean neighbors is by providing them with a safe place to meet and fellowship.

STATESBORO, Ga. — Energetic volunteers gathered at Southbridge Community Church on Saturday, Nov. 10, before spreading throughout Statesboro to help homeowners still cleaning up after Hurricane Helene. The effort, coordinated by the Ogeechee River Baptist Association and Southbridge Church, was dubbed “Love Statesboro.”

STATESBORO, Ga. — Kevin Ezell, president of the North American Mission Board, told Georgia Baptists that because we have a limited amount of time on this earth, “We must talk about mission with a sense of urgency,” he said, “because you don’t know how long you have.”

Korean pastors and church leaders greeted each other warmly, some clearly friends and others meeting for the first time. Representing different churches, they joined in the city of Asan, Korea, for one purpose. More than 40 Korean Baptist leaders met in October for a missions consultation based on the book Eight Steps of the Missions Continuum.

UTICA, Ky. (KT) — The path James Perkins has taken to become an International Mission Board missionary is not your typical story. He’s been a soldier, during which time he served a one-year deployment in Afghanistan, then has owned a grocery store. But the call to missions became evident this past January.

ANKENY, Iowa (BP) — Preaching and telling others about Jesus has been everything to Ed Gregory for 58 years. When his time as a full-time pastor ended, he joined the Pastoral Ministry Team of the Baptist Convention of Iowa as an encourager and mentor.

SAINT SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. — Not many people have had even one front-row seat to watch history unfolding before their eyes. Retired Col. Jerry Whiteside, U.S. Army, 87, has had two notable ones.

Michael Myers really frightened me on Halloween night. If you aren’t a scary movie fan, Michael Myers was a terrible, awful character from the 1978 horror movie Halloween. He is not real. I know he is not real. But his mask and dark blue coveralls give me chills. Still.

I don't know about you, but my life is pretty crazy right now. Crazy in the sense of busyness and just kind of chaotic.

A lot of little popsicle sticks can go a long way when they’re put together. That’s what the Woman’s Missionary Union has been trying to show as they’ve been working on a craft stick houseboat for the past six months.

POWDER SPRINGS, Ga. — People seeking counseling in Cobb and Paulding counties now have an option that provides Biblically-based help for those dealing with trauma and crises. Burnt Hickory Baptist Church last week officially opened its new counseling center, which is open to the public and provides pastoral and clinical counseling services for individuals, couples, and families.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Brent Leatherwood president of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention, comments on yesterday’s election results, including the abortion ballot initiatives in 10 states.

NASHVILLE (BP) – Cooperative Program giving for the first month of the fiscal year totaled more than $14 million but fell short of the monthly goal. October giving was 3.65 percent below the budgeted amount.