By Jeff Brumley The first time around as a pregnant Baptist minister, Stacy Cochran Nowell harbored worries few other moms-to-be are likely to share. Chief among them was that older church members might object to the sight of an expectant…
Church shares racism with police forces, says minister and former cop in book
By Jeff Brumley Baptist minister Terrell Carter felt he could identify when a police officer fatally shot Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo., last August. “I know what it’s like to be racially profiled,” said Carter, who is African-American. “But on…
McAfee students report transformed lives — their own — in teaching prisoners
By Jeff Brumley It’s been hard for some to fathom how a condemned prisoner earned a certificate in theology while on Georgia’s death row. Even one of those who taught Kelly Gissendaner says it’s amazing that she could write papers…
Pastors wary as winter weather takes financial toll on nation’s churches
By Jeff Brumley With an ice storm blanketing Fort Worth, Texas, Senior Pastor Brent Beasley set out for Broadway Baptist Church to determine if services should be canceled the following morning. He found the sidewalks and parking lots covered by…
Baptist church transforms Sunday school into community and pastoral care
By Jeff Brumley They have a different way of doing Sunday school at Johns Creek Baptist Church in Alpharetta, Ga. — and that’s a good thing, given the state of today’s Baptist Sunday school system. “It’s mired in 1975, still,” said Michael…
Surging water ministries about more than digging wells, mission leaders say
By Jeff Brumley and Ken Camp Water poverty has become an increasingly popular missions focus for U.S.-based churches, ministries and denominational groups in recent years. “It’s a hot-button issue right now,” said Colleen Burroughs, executive vice president for Passport Inc.,…
Baptists, Methodists seek to overcome differences to minister together
By Jeff Brumley Nowadays, Baptists and Methodists seem the least likely to become entangled in theological disputes or battles over turf and members. Pulpit swaps and shared downtown ministries are increasingly common between them. But that was not always the…
Minister trades prison garb for orange T-shirt to help ex-cons find work
By Jeff Brumley Customers and staff took notice when a guy wearing an orange prison jump suit strolled into an Italian restaurant in Waco, Texas, for takeout on the final day of Lent 2014. “It was weird to me so…
No manuscripts for Baptist pastor who sketches and colors sermon notes
By Jeff Brumley John Jay Alvaro uses a variety of terms to describe the way he prepares his sermons at Spring Creek Baptist Church in Oklahoma City. And “outline” isn’t one of them. “Manuscript” doesn’t make the list, either. Instead,…