Connie Dixon covered some miles this past year as she served as national Woman’s Missionary Union president. She visited 20 states, had 29 speaking opportunities, attended 94 Zoom calls, recorded five videos and two podcasts, wrote 27 articles and walked through 61 airports. “I have loved every minute of it, but more than anything I am so honored to serve as president of an organization I love so much,” said Dixon, a member of First Baptist Church Elida, New Mexico.

HELENA, Mont. (AP) — Flooding has wiped out roads and bridges and closed off all entrances to Yellowstone National Park at the onset of the busy summer tourist season. Officials are evacuating visitors from the northern part of the park. And the flooding has cut off road access to Gardiner, a town of about 900 people near Yellowstone’s busy North Entrance.

More than 100 million Americans are being warned to stay indoors if possible as a heat wave settles over states stretching through parts of the Gulf Coast to the Great Lakes and east to the Carolinas. The National Weather Service Prediction Center in College Park, Maryland, said Monday that a combination of heat advisories, excessive heat warnings and excessive heat watches will impact 107.5 million people, and record-setting temperatures are expected to last through midweek.

ANAHEIM, Calif. – Texas pastor Jared Wellman didn’t jump at the chance to become chairman of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Executive Committee, which has been navigating a tumultuous couple years amid a lingering sexual abuse scandal. “When I was originally asked, I said no, and I referred to someone else to serve,” Wellman said at a Monday press conference at the Anaheim Convention Center.

ATLANTA – Each of the three main credit rating agencies has given Georgia a rating of AAA with a stable outlook, which will yield savings when the state sells bonds next week.

LAGRANGE, Ga. (AP) — A Georgia woman remains in critical condition, two days after she was injured and her granddaughter drowned while they were fishing on a lake. Sgt. Stewart Smith of the Troup County Sheriff’s Office says Monday that 40-year-old Stephanie Walker was in Wellstar West Georgia Medical Center. Her granddaughter, 13-year-old Makayla “Kayla” Prather was pronounced dead Saturday at West Point Lake, near the Alabama state line.

NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street tumbled into a bear market Monday after fears about a fragile economy sent the S&P 500 more than 20% below its record set early this year. The index sank 3.9% in the first chance for investors to trade after getting the weekend to reflect on the stunning news that inflation is getting worse. The Dow was briefly down more than 1,000 points.

ANAHEIM, Calif. – Georgia’s Clay Smith told Southern Baptist pastors on Monday that, amid cultural shifts that have made their jobs tougher, it’s more crucial than ever to be faithful to their calling. “As has often been said, we’re now the away team in our world,” said Smith, pastor at Johnson Ferry Baptist Church in Marietta, Ga. “The fans aren’t wearing our jerseys. They’re not clapping for us. They’re not rooting for us.”

A lawyer for a father-son team of treasure hunters is accusing the FBI of either lying to a federal judge about having video of its 2018 dig for legendary Civil War-era gold, or illegally destroying the video. The FBI has acknowledged it was looking for gold at the Pennsylvania site but says it found nothing of value.

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) — Authorities say firefighters are responding to a wildfire about six miles north of Flagstaff, Arizona, that has forced evacuations. Coconino National Forest officials say the Pipeline Fire was reported Sunday morning by a fire lookout. By late that evening, it had burned approximately 4,000-5,000 acres, pushing about 15 miles.

ANAHEIM, Calif. – Lee Brand Jr., the Southern Baptist Convention’s current first vice president, will officially nominate Georgia’s Javier Chavez for the position of recording secretary at an annual meeting that begins Tuesday. That announcement was made on Monday.

Country music star Toby Keith says he has been undergoing treatment for stomach cancer since last fall. The multi-platinum-selling singer said Sunday on Twitter that he underwent surgery and received chemotherapy and radiation in the past six months.

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. regulators have historically inspected baby formula plants at least once a year, but they did not inspect any of the three biggest manufacturers in 2020. That's according to federal records reviewed by The Associated Press. The FDA has consistently inspected infant formula facilities annually. But in early 2020, the FDA pulled most of its safety inspectors from the field because of the pandemic. So it skipped thousands of routine plant inspections.

OUAGADOUGOU, Burkina Faso (AP) — Attacks by Islamic extremists are on the rise five months after mutinous soldiers overthrew Burkina Faso's democratically elected president. And analysts say that could undermine support for coup leader Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba’s regime. Many in Burkina Faso supported the military takeover, frustrated with the previous government’s inability to stem Islamic extremist violence that has killed thousands.

Day after day, Russia is pounding the Donbas region of Ukraine with relentless artillery and air raids, making slow but steady progress to seize the industrial heartland of its neighbor. With the conflict now in its fourth month, it’s a high-stakes campaign that could dictate the course of the entire war.

NEW DELHI (AP) — India and other Asian nations are becoming an increasingly vital source of oil revenues for Moscow as the U.S. and other Western countries cut their energy imports from Russia in line with sanctions over its war on Ukraine. Such sales are boosting Russian export revenues at a time when Washington and allies are trying to limit Moscow's cash flows.

BEIJING (AP) — China's capital has put school back online in one of its major districts amid a new COVID-19 outbreak linked to a nightclub. A total of 228 cases have been linked to the Heaven Supermarket club in the downtown Workers Stadium nightlife area after an infected person visited there Thursday. That prompted authorities in the sprawling Chaoyang district to put school back online, with the exception of students taking middle and high school placement exams.

NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street is tumbling Monday amid fears a recession is more likely given how unshakeable inflation has become. The S&P 500 was 2.7% lower in the first trading after investors had the weekend to reflect about a stunning report that showed inflation is getting worse, not better as some had hoped.

ANAHEIM, Calif. – The strength of the Southern Baptist Convention lies with small churches where Christians serve without fanfare just because they want to please God. So says Mark Clifton, the small-town preacher who serves as senior director of church replanting for the North American Mission Board

No. 1 national seed Tennessee is out of the NCAA baseball tournament. Mississippi, the last team selected, punched its ticket to the College World Series. Sunday produced the biggest surprises of a tournament that went mostly according to form in the regional round. Super regionals have made up for that lack of drama. Notre Dame beat Tennessee 7-3 in the deciding game of their super regional. Ole Miss won 5-0 at Southern Mississippi, Oklahoma beat No. 4 Virginia Tech 11-2 and Arkansas eliminated North Carolina 4-3. Texas A&M clinched its CWS bid Saturday.

ANAHEIM, Calif. (BP) – Following a week of Southern Baptist seminary students engaging neighborhoods around Anaheim, 34 churches engaged their communities through various outreach events Saturday through Crossover, which partnered with Send Relief to host a Serve Tour experience that took place ahead of the 2022 Southern Baptist Convention Annual Meeting.

Studies show fathers have a tremendous impact on their children’s spiritual lives, or at least their church attendance. According to Lifeway Research Group, Father’s Day is the Sunday with the lowest average church attendance, lower than Labor Day, Memorial Day and even July 4th weekends.

I was excited to read a recent report from the International Mission Board about the successes of Southern Baptist missionaries in Taiwan. The stories of changed hearts and lives are an encouragement to every Christian.

The greatest problem in the world is lostness. The only solution to the world’s greatest problem is the gospel. The biblical example for taking the gospel to the lost is by physical presence. And for Southern Baptists, physical missionary presence to the nations is how we cooperate to fulfill both the Great Commission and the Great Multitude pictured in Revelation 7:9.

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — When the Golden State Warriors made their fourth-quarter push to get back into the NBA Finals, Draymond Green had the unusual role as spectator. The versatile Green who has been one of the stalwarts of Golden State’s dynasty got pulled in crunch time of Game 4 in what was a and effective decision by coach Steve Kerr.