Baptist Press Archive

Friday, July 28, 2017

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  • Redefine your life, Send Conference's 4,000 exhorted
    by Josie Bingham, posted Friday, July 28, 2017 (7 years ago)

    Photo by Casey Jones
    ORLANDO, Fla. (BP) -- "Is anybody hungry for a fresh move of God?" Las Vegas pastor Vance Pitman asked the crowd of 4,000-plus during the first of four main gatherings at the Send Conference in Orlando, Fla.

    "Our prayer is that God would move fresh in your heart -- that you would have a fresh encounter with the Holy Spirit," said Pitman, senior pastor of Hope Church in Las Vegas, in speaking on how to live on mission by redefining life. Read More

  • NY Times op-ed spurs discussion of race & the SBC
    by David Roach, posted Friday, July 28, 2017 (7 years ago)

    Photo by Diana Chandler
    NASHVILLE (BP) -- A black Oklahoma minister's New York Times op-ed "renouncing [his] ordination in the Southern Baptist Convention" has drawn responses from a range of African Americans who say they will continue to cooperate with the convention as it pursues racial reconciliation.

    Meanwhile, the op-ed's author, Lawrence Ware, explained his views in an interview with Baptist Press, noting he does not believe Southern Baptists by and large are intentionally racist. He also said he likely would have "softened" some of his language against the SBC if given an opportunity to rewrite the op-ed. Read More

  • Brownback lauded as int'l religious liberty nominee
    by Tom Strode, posted Friday, July 28, 2017 (7 years ago)

    Screen capture from KWCH.com
    WASHINGTON (BP) -- President Trump's selection of Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback for the U.S. State Department's top religious liberty post has drawn praise from advocates for the freedom that is under threat in much of the world.

    The White House announced Wednesday night (July 26) the president's intention to nominate Brownback as ambassador-at-large for international religious freedom. Brownback welcomed the opportunity despite being in the midst of his second term as Kansas governor. Read More

  • Infant Charlie Gard dies after parents' futile pleas
    by Tom Strode, posted Friday, July 28, 2017 (7 years ago)

    Screen capture from Fox News
    WASHINGTON (BP) -- Charlie Gard -- the infant at the center of a battle over parental authority that gained international attention -- has died, his parents announced today (July 28) in England.

    "Our beautiful little boy has gone, we are so proud of you Charlie," his mother, Connie Yates, said in a statement, according to the British Broadcasting Corp. (BBC) News. Read More

  • Why I'm staying in the Southern Baptist Convention
    by Gabriel C. Stovall, posted Friday, July 28, 2017 (7 years ago)

    ATLANTA (BP) -- Almost 24 hours after the back-to-back deaths of Alton Sterling and then Philando Castile by the trigger hand of police officers last summer, my Facebook inbox lit up.

    Nearly a dozen people, who I called brothers in Christ, were saying they had had enough.

    They were tired of watching black men get cut down by policemen's bullets. They were nauseous, they said, of seeing white people scratch their collective heads trying to figure out why people of color were so traumatized by these deaths. ... Read More

  • FIRST-PERSON: Get ready for kickoff!
    by Diana Davis, posted Friday, July 28, 2017 (7 years ago)

    A great beginning can set the pace for a great year, Diana Davis notes in setting forth tips for planning kickoff events that can attract newcomers to a ministry as well as build momentum among ongoing participants. Read More

  • EDITORIAL: Viaje ligero
    by Luis R. López, posted Friday, July 28, 2017 (7 years ago)

    Escribo esta columna días después que nos mudamos de casa en Tennessee. Vivimos en nuestra casa anterior por más de veinte años. Allí crecieron nuestros dos hijos varones. ... Read More