Monday, November 30, 2015

• Pro-life leaders decry shootings at abortion clinic

  by Tom Strode, posted Monday, November 30, 2015 (8 years ago)

  

  CNN screen grab

  COLORADO SPRINGS (BP) -- Pro-life leaders condemned the deadly shooting spree at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado Springs while expressing grief and concern for the victims and their survivors.

  The uniform opposition by leading pro-life advocates came in response to the shooting deaths of three people and injuries to nine others Nov. 27. Robert Lewis Dear Jr., 57, surrendered to police at the clinic after a five-hour standoff. Read More

• ERLC trip points to complexity in Israel

  by Tom Strode, posted Monday, November 30, 2015 (8 years ago)

  

  NASHVILLE (BP) -- American Christians need humility and helpful information to think biblically about modern Israel, pastors said after touring the Middle East country as part of a Southern Baptist delegation.

  The Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission led the Nov. 9-16 tour to equip Southern Baptist pastors and leaders regarding issues in Israel and to acquaint them with the work of the entity's new international religious freedom office, which is located in the ... Read More

• WEEK OF PRAYER: Training Christian leaders amid ‘ocean of idolatry’

  by Kate Gregory, posted Monday, November 30, 2015 (8 years ago)

  

  SOUTH ASIA (BP) -- Donald and Helen McKinneys'* outreach to South Asians started in North America. They first got to know a South Asian people group in their church's backyard in New York state before becoming Christian workers on the other side of the world.

  Helen and her Sunday School teacher from Trinity Baptist Church in Niskayuna, N.Y., began visiting the homes of the church's neighbors, several of whom were from South Asia. Each Thursday over tea, they formed friendships with the families ... Read More

• Arabic Baptist pastor Raouf Ghattas dies at 69

  by Lonnie Wilkey/Baptist & Reflector, posted Monday, November 30, 2015 (8 years ago)

  

  Baptist and Reflector submitted photo

  MURFREESBORO, Tenn. -- Raouf W. Ghattas, a Tennessee Baptist pastor known for his work in reaching Muslims with the Gospel, died Nov. 25 of an apparent heart attack at his home in Murfreesboro. He was 69.

  Ghattas was noted for his love of Muslims and his desire to educate others about Islamic culture and sharing the Gospel with Muslims. He was pastor of Arabic Baptist Church in Murfreesboro, a congregation he helped establish in 2011 with his wife Carol. Read More

• Cyclists, father-son tell CP value to Ariz. Baptists

  by Elizabeth Young/Arizona Portraits, posted Monday, November 30, 2015 (8 years ago)

  

  YUMA, Ariz. (BP) -- At an annual meeting bookended by missions activities, Arizona Southern Baptists heard Cooperative Program testimonies, adopted the first Cooperative Program budget increase in five years and were reminded of their personal responsibility to share the Gospel.

  "All Peoples" was the theme of the annual meeting, attended by 175 messengers and 40 registered visitors at Stone Ridge Church in Yuma. It was the first time since 1979 that the Arizona Southern Baptist Convention annual meeting had been held ... Read More

• Illinois Baptists commit to 5 evangelism challenges

  by Eric Reed & Meredith Flynn/Illinois Baptist, posted Monday, November 30, 2015 (8 years ago)

  

  MARION, Ill. (BP) -- The theme song for the evangelistic focus of the Illinois Baptist State Association's 109th annual meeting left messengers with fresh words for prayer:

  Heal our streets and land,

  Show your mighty hand;

  Win this nation back…

  Build Your kingdom here!

  ("Build Your Kingdom Here" by Rend Collective, ©2011, Thankyou Music) Read More

• FIRST-PERSON: Why we are where we are

  by Ronnie Floyd, posted Monday, November 30, 2015 (8 years ago)

  Ronnie Floyd, president of the Southern Baptist Convention, shares thoughts on the state of Christianity in America and the world. Read More