LADY LAKE, Fla. (ABP) — Within hours after killer tornadoes tore gashes across central parts of Florida Feb. 2, Florida Baptist disaster-relief teams were mobilized with chainsaws in hand to help victims. The violent storm system, which spawned as many…
Effective prayer: Variety, small groups, spiritual practices make prayer count
DALLAS (ABP) — Baptists understand numbers. That's how they measure baptisms, Bible study attendance, donations and building campaigns. But when it comes to prayer, Baptists seem less certain about how to measure the effectiveness of prayer ministries. Counting the number…
LifeWay removes ‘questionable’ online titles; seeks to improve filtering process
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (ABP) — LifeWay Christian Resources has removed a number of pro-gay titles from its online store, LifeWaystores.com, after staffers became aware of the books' availability. EthicsDaily.com reported Jan. 29 that LifeWay had several authors listed on the site…
Correction
In the Feb. 1 story “IMB trustee investigation rejects allegations of board impropriety,” the name of IMB President Jerry Rankin was misspelled. Please replace the story's 12th graph with the following: One policy bans the appointment of new missionaries…
Bush, Genome Project scientist call U.S. to prayer at breakfast
WASHINGTON (ABP) — President Bush and a prominent biologist called the United States and the world to prayer during the National Prayer Breakfast Feb. 1. “You know, it's an amazing country, isn't it, when people from all walks of life…
Fellowship Baptists create new Midwest regional organization
ATLANTA (ABP) — The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, a partnership of moderate Baptist churches and organizations, added a new, five-state regional body to its group of constituents. The new consortium includes Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota. At the…
Land replaces Senate chaplain at Religious Right meeting
WASHINGTON (ABP) — United States Senate Chaplain Barry Black has canceled a scheduled appearance at a conference featuring prominent Religious Right activists — and will be replaced by the Southern Baptist Convention's ethics guru. Black informed organizers of the “Reclaiming…
Tornadoes kill 19 in Central Florida; Baptist retreat center damaged
EUSTIS, Fla. (ABP) — Tornadoes that ripped across Central Florida in the early morning hours of Feb. 2 killed at least 19 people and destroyed housing developments, churches and businesses in four counties. A tornado that touched down at 3:30…
Baptist volunteers help meet needs of refugees in Canada
ATLANTA (ABP) — Eleanor and Stu Dodson named their motor home Ebenezer and dedicated it to God. Then they hit the road to follow a new calling. Choosing to live their retirement years in a missions capacity, the Dodsons took…
Super Bowl coaches’ Baptist, Methodist roots remain with them on game day
MIAMI (ABP) — While much has been made about NFL head coaches Tony Dungy's and Lovie Smith's skin color, they've got a stronger bond than being the first African-American head coaches to lead their teams to the Super Bowl. The…
IMB trustee investigation rejects allegations of board impropriety
ONTARIO, Calif. (ABP) — The Southern Baptist Convention's International Mission Board, following an internal investigation, has rejected a trustee's accusations of impropriety and unauthorized tightening of doctrinal parameters. The board reportedly approved a report, based on its own executive committee's…
Baptist chainsaw teams help residents dig out after ice storm in Oklahoma
MCALESTER, Okla. (ABP) — Jack Macy calls them “angels.” And 180 families agree with him. Macy is referring to chainsaw teams deployed by Texas Baptist Men to help victims of severe ice storms in North Texas and Oklahoma. The teams,…