Shannon Labrie knows what it means to hustle.  She grew up on a small farm in the Midwestern US. Farming communities large and small are marked by their incredible work ethic. Hustle and hard work grows something deep in a person that just cannot bear fruit any other way.

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) — An uncontrolled fire raging at a North Carolina fertilizer plant forced the evacuations of thousands of people as firefighters warned early Tuesday that chemicals at the site could cause a large explosion.

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — As the Chinese government tightened its grip over its ethnic Uyghur population, it sentenced one man to death and three others to life in prison last year for textbooks drawn …

FRESNO, Calif. (BP) – California Southern Baptist Convention Executive Director Bill Agee will begin a transition to retirement on Feb. 1 and conclude by Dec. 31.

BRENTWOOD, Tenn. (BP) – The turbulence of the past few years has left many young adults feeling lost and searching for answers to spiritual questions. That description fit Kenneth Durlin, a young man recently baptized through the Kairos ministry at Brentwood Baptist Church.

ANAHEIM, Calif. (BP) – Messenger pre-registration and childcare registration opens for this year's Southern Baptist Convention Annual Meeting June 14-15 in Anaheim, Calif.

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Russia accused the West on Monday of “whipping up tensions” over Ukraine and said the U.S. had brought “pure Nazis” to power in Kyiv as the U.N. Security Council held a stormy and bellicose debate on Moscow's troop buildup near its southern neighbor.

DULUTH, Ga. – One of the most biblical, helpful, and productive things a skilled leader and mature Christian can do is disciple or mentor young believers or growing Christians. The Apostle Paul admonished Timothy, writing, “Therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the thing that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also” (II Tim. 2:1-2).

BUFORD, Ga. – Ivy Creek Baptist Church has begun a two-phase $12.1 million building expansion to accommodate a rapidly growing congregation.

BRUNSWICK, Ga. (AP) — A federal judge rejected a plea agreement Monday that would have averted a hate crimes trial for the man convicted of murdering Ahmaud Arbery.

MOUNT VERNON — Brewton-Parker College has received notification that the Bachelor of Science in Nursing program had been approved by the Executive Council of The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges Board of Trustees to begin in the Fall of 2022.

ORLANDO, Fla. (BP) – Georgia Pastor James Merritt was among 25 speakers headlining the Global Church Network's biennial Synergize 2022 conference aimed at fulfilling the Great Commission by 2030.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Who Dey!? Not those same ol’ Bungles. Not even close.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — Travin Howard made a game-sealing interception with 1:09 to play, and the Los Angeles Rams rallied from a 10-point deficit in the fourth quarter to secure a spot in the Super Bowl at their home stadium next month with a thrilling 20-17 victory over the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC championship game Sunday night.

Two years ago, the Cincinnati Bengals were the NFL's worst team. Now they're headed to the Super Bowl to play the Los Angeles Rams — in the Rams' home stadium.

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The United Nations has received “credible allegations” that more than 100 former members of the Afghan government, its security forces and those who worked with international troops have been killed since the Taliban took over the country Aug. 15, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres says.

For several years, the YouVersion Bible app has released its most often booked-marked, highlighted, and shared verse from the previous year. In 2021, this nation’s most popular verse was “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you” (Matthew 6:33).

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The United Arab Emirates intercepted a ballistic missile fired by Yemen's Houthi rebels early Monday as the Israeli president visited the country, authorities said, the third-such attack in recent weeks.

HAWKINSVILLE, Ga. – As darkness settled over the Browndale Plantation in Hawkinsville, a group of about 25 people prepared for one of the South’s oldest traditions, a coon hunt, arranged by a Georgia ministry that seeks to strengthen families by bringing them into the great outdoors.

A continued increase in recent weeks of Russian troops on its border with Ukraine has mirrored the escalation of tensions in the area. In such times when the world’s geopolitical temperature rises, military chaplains begin making mental, spiritual and strategic preparations in case of conflict.

NORTHBOROUGH, Mass. (BP) — In celebration of the 40th anniversary of its founding, the Berkland Baptist Church network of churches, including Antioch Baptist Church in Cambridge, donated $1 million to the Baptist Convention of New England. The gift is the largest ever received by the New England convention and will be used to fund church planting, church revitalization and collegiate ministry.

LVIV, Ukraine (BP) – Baptists in Western Ukraine have made plans to shelter fellow believers in the case of a Russian invasion at Ukraine’s eastern border, a Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary graduate who now leads a Baptist seminary in Ukraine told Baptist Press.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (BP) – The city of Louisville settled a lawsuit out of court on Thursday  after Kentucky police officer Matt Schrenger sued the city and the police department for violating his constitutional and civil rights. He will receive $75,000 from the city.

DULUTH, Ga. – The "Next Gen" team at the Georgia Baptist Mission Board, aware of concerning research into the spiritual struggles that teens face, is committed to helping churches develop strong student ministries.

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — More than a third of the people in Ethiopia’s embattled Tigray region “are suffering an extreme lack of food,” the United Nations World Food Program said in a new …