When Children’s Director JoAnn Mann and her colleagues, most embarking on their first international mission trip, signed up with Send Relief to serve in Puerto Rico, they had no idea that the experience would forge deep connections not only with the family they were meant to assist but also with each other.

NASHVILLE (BP) – Late last Wednesday afternoon, June 12, the gavel dropped at the 2024 SBC Annual Meeting in Indianapolis and thus officially ended the service of those on the Convention’s Abuse Reform Implementation Task Force. However, several weren’t there to see it.

MOSCOW (AP) — A court in Russia’s far eastern city of Vladivostok on Wednesday convicted a visiting American soldier of stealing and making threats of murder, and it sentenced him to three years and nine months in prison.

ROSWELL, N.M. (AP) — Cooler weather — and the chance of rain — could bring some relief this week to firefighters battling blazes in southern New Mexico that killed one person, damaged hundreds of structures and forced thousands to evacuate.

DALLAS — In the New Testament, we find these words: “Pure and undefiled religion before God the Father is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress …” James 1:27 (CSB) On Sunday, June 23, Southern Baptists will again have the opportunity to honor unsung heroes of the faith — namely, retirement-aged Southern Baptist pastors, workers and their widows who served and abundantly blessed others during their years of ministry.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — A bulk carrier sank days after an attack by Yemen's Houthi rebels believed to have killed one mariner on board, authorities said early Wednesday, the second ship sunk in the rebels' campaign.

BRENTWOOD, Tenn. — Two years ago, the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and the right to an abortion. In the aftermath, many churchgoers say they’ve seen their congregations involved in supporting local pregnancy resource centers.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on Wednesday signed a new partnership that includes a vow of mutual aid if either country faces “aggression,” in a pact that came as both face escalating standoffs with the West.

I heard about a physician who said, “Many of my patients have nothing wrong with them except their thoughts. So I have a favorite prescription I write for some. But it is not a prescription that you can fill at a drugstore. The prescription I write is a verse from the Bible, Romans 12:2.

AMBLETEUSE, France (AP) — The rising tide crept above their waists, soaking the babies they hugged tight. Around a dozen Kurds refused to leave the cold waters of the English Channel in a futile attempt to delay the inevitable: French police had just foiled their latest attempt to reach the United Kingdom by boat.

Willie Mays, the electrifying “Say Hey Kid” whose singular combination of talent, drive and exuberance made him one of baseball’s greatest and most beloved players, has died. He was 93. Mays' family and the San Francisco Giants jointly announced Tuesday night he had died earlier in the afternoon in the Bay Area.

ATLANTA (AP) — Braves rookie Spencer Schwellenbach had his best start and Ozzie Albies delivered a key hit for the second straight game as the Atlanta Braves downed the Detroit Tigers 2-1 on Tuesday night. The Braves also beat the Tigers 2-1 on Monday in the series opener.

INDIANAPOLIS (BP) – In anticipation of the 100th anniversary celebration of the Cooperative Program (CP) in 2025, Baptist Press editor Brandon Porter interviewed Tony Wolfe, executive director-treasurer of the South Carolina Baptist Convention, and John Kyle, communications director at the Louisiana Baptist Convention, on the CP Stage in the Exhibit Hall prior to the annual meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention.

SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) — Hyundai Motor Group said Tuesday that it plans to begin manufacturing IONIQ 5 electric SUVs at its sprawling new plant in Georgia this fall.

WASHINGTON – The US Department of Labor has adopted a new rule effective July 1, 2024, that increases the salary thresholds required to exempt a salaried executive, administrative or professional employee from federal overtime pay requirements.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (KT) — A federal court in Covington has pressed pause on the Biden administration’s effort to rewrite Title IX, a federal law designed to create equal opportunities for students in education and athletics.

LONDON, Ky. (KT) — A small church in the Laurel River Baptist Association had a unique experience earlier this month when a 93-year-old man was baptized. Baldrock Baptist Church Pastor Vince Mullins said Guy Black’s profession of faith leading to his baptism has “so excited our little church.”

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korean troops fired warning shots to repel North Korean soldiers who briefly crossed the rivals’ heavily fortified land border Tuesday for the second time this month, the South's military said. Both incursions were believed to be unintentional.

NEW YORK (AP) — Janille Williams wants to buy a house someday — but first, he has to pay down tens of thousands of dollars in medical debt. “I was hospitalized for a blood infection for three months more than ten years ago, and the bill was for more than $300,000,” said Williams, 38, a Fairbanks, Alaska, resident who works as a retail sales manager for AT&T

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Firefighters have increased their containment of a large wildfire that is burning in steep, hard-to-reach areas and threatening critical infrastructure in mountains north of Los Angeles, officials said. But hot, dry, windy weather could challenge their efforts Tuesday.

PHOENIX (AP) — Extreme heat alerts continued for tens of millions of people in the United States on Tuesday as cities including Chicago broke records at the start of a week of sweltering weather.

MARIETTA, Ga. (AP) — A father from Georgia has been released from prison 10 years after his toddler died in a hot car, a case that made global headlines after prosecutors accused him of murder. Justin Ross Harris was freed on Sunday — Father's Day — from the Macon State Prison, Georgia Department of Corrections records show. He began serving his sentence on Dec. 6, 2016.

ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp said Tuesday that he discussed South Korean investment in Georgia and international security during a meeting with South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol in Seoul.

ATLANTA – Mail processing at the United States Postal Service’s regional facility in Palmetto is getting better, but Georgians are continuing to suffer delays sending and receiving mail.

BOSTON (AP) — Jayson Tatum put his hands behind his head, with fans standing on their feet cheering around him, and took it all in. Walking to the bench, he wrapped both arms around Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla. The journey was complete. The Boston Celtics again stand alone among NBA champions.