LVIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia widened its offensive in Ukraine on Friday, striking airfields in the west and a major industrial city in the east, while the huge armored column that had been stalled for over a week outside Kyiv was on the move again, spreading out into forests and towns near the capital.

Community leaders and legislators expressed their concerns about gambling expansion Wednesday during a Capitol press conference organized by Citizen Impact, Frontline Policy Council and the Georgia Baptist Mission Board.

NASHVILLE (BP) – The team tasked with searching for a new president & CEO of the SBC Executive Committee is asking for prayer. The group also has launched a 21-day prayer initiative and created a day-by-day guide to encourage specific prayers for each day the rest of the month.

SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) — Georgia’s highest court refused Thursday to interfere with election officials finalizing results of a referendum in which voters overwhelmingly rejected plans to buy land for a rocket launch pad.

Georgia coach Tom Crean has been fired in a much-anticipated announcement a day after the end of a 26-loss season.

WOODSTOCK, Ga. (AP) — An annual rattlesnake roundup in south Georgia recently changed the format of this month’s event to celebrate living snakes without skinning and butchering them, earning …

ATLANTA (AP) — Movie director Ryan Coogler was briefly handcuffed by Atlanta police after a bank teller mistook him for a robber when he passed her a note while trying to withdraw a large amount of cash from his account.

CLEVELAND (AP) — With All-Star center Jarrett Allen sidelined indefinitely with a broken finger, the Cleveland Cavaliers signed big man Moses Brown to a 10-day contract on Thursday.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (BP) – John Yeats’ 25th term as recording secretary for the Southern Baptist Convention will be his last, he told Missouri Baptist Convention Executive Board members at the group’s meeting March 7.

Everywhere amid the exodus of more than 2.3 million people fleeing Russia’s invasion are the pets people could not leave behind.

I’d like to invite you to sign up for what I believe can be an essential new prayer resource for Georgia Baptists.

CARTERSVILLE – Lottie Moon, a household name among Southern Baptists because of her selfless and sacrificial missionary service among the people of China, has a beautiful new chapel named for her and dedicated in her memory at First Baptist Church in Cartersville.

Ephesians 4:11 doesn’t really seem like a stirring or moving verse: “It was He (God) Who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers …”  Yet, this morning, I was convicted and it left me with tears in my eyes.

When I get aggravated about rising gas prices, inflated grocery costs, and other inconveniences stemming from the Russia/Ukraine conflict, I remind myself, “At least I know where my next meal is coming from, and I have a warm bed to sleep in.”

A 12-game losing streak capped by Georgia's worst offensive performance of the season has left coach Tom Crean awaiting a final verdict on his future with the school.

NORTH KINGSTOWN, R.I. (AP) — This is the story of a mischievous mutt who turned out to be a very good girl. Such a good girl, in fact, that she saved a life.

Western sanctions are dealing a severe blow to Russia's economy. The ruble is plunging, foreign businesses are fleeing and sharply higher prices are in the offing. Familiar products may disappear from stores, and middle-class achievements like foreign vacations are in doubt.

MARIUPOL, Ukraine (AP) — A Russian airstrike on a Mariupol maternity hospital that killed three people drew outrage on Thursday, with Ukrainian and British officials branding it a war crime. As efforts to reach a broad cease-fire failed, emergency workers renewed efforts to get vital food and medical supplies into besieged cities, and to get traumatized residents out.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — When it comes to making financial decisions, although some Christian young adults are influenced by their faith, many don’t manage their money in distinctly Christian ways.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Two weeks into its war in Ukraine, Russia has achieved less and struggled more than anticipated at the outset of the biggest land conflict in Europe since World War II. But the invading force of more than 150,000 troops retains large and possibly decisive advantages in firepower as they bear down on key cities.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris’ trip to Warsaw to thank Poland for taking in hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians fleeing Russia’s invasion took an unexpected turn before she even left Washington. She’ll be parachuting into the middle of unexpected diplomatic turbulence over fighter jets.

BRUSSELS (AP) — Europe faces a tough choice: Is it worth a recession to choke off oil and gas money to Russia while it fights a war in Ukraine?

Do these quotes sound familiar?“Why should we care?” “It’s over there, so it’s not our problem.” “We don’t need to get involved in other people’s …

ZAHONY, Hungary (AP) — After bombs started falling in her hometown of Kharkiv, Annamaria Maslovska left her friends, her toys and her life in Ukraine and set off on a days-long journey with her mother toward safety in the West.

The first person to receive a heart transplant from a pig has died, two months after the groundbreaking experiment, the Maryland hospital that performed the surgery announced Wednesday.