by Lauren Keating | Aug 3, 2023 | Episodes
Leaders are continuing to work for the release of a Christian nurse and her daughter in Haiti. A Texas mission team is headed home from Niger after the July 26 military coup interrupted their outreach to the Fulani, their church announced Aug. 2. And, lots of people enjoy a good bonfire. A good bonfire requires fuel. So does your prayer life if it’s going to be strong. In the Baptist Press Toolbox, Kie Bowman offers some tips on how to keep a strong prayer life.
by Lauren Keating | Aug 2, 2023 | Episodes
Belief in God, Satan, angels, heaven and hell is at a 23-year low in America, Gallup Poll said in a recent update. A Birmingham, Alabama church is working to bounce back following the COVID pandemic. And, in the Baptist Press Toolbox, Brandon Sutton offers several ways you might consider serving your local church.
by Lauren Keating | Aug 1, 2023 | Episodes
Puerto Ricans are preparing for the upcoming hurricane season. Just days after State Department officials warned Americans to leave Haiti, a Christian aid worker and her daughter have been kidnapped. And, in an article in the Baptist Press Toolbox, Kie Bowman offers six suggestions for how you can pray for other believers.
by Lauren Keating | Jul 26, 2023 | Episodes
A Bowling Green University student has been charged with a federal misdemeanor under the FACE (Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances) Act. Kansas City may be known for top-notch football and fabulous barbeque, but thousands of people who call the city home don’t know Jesus. And, while study God’s Word should be a priority for believers and for small groups in a local church, a Lifeway Research articles says growing small groups and building community takes more than the study alone.
by Lauren Keating | Jul 25, 2023 | Episodes
A group of state have passed legislation blocking gender transition and hormonal treatment for minors in 2023. People all over the world have questions about the gospel of Jesus Christ. And, theology sounds like a big word but at its core it is thinking about God.
by Lauren Keating | Jul 24, 2023 | Episodes
Southern Baptist Disaster Relief teams from three states are joining those in New England to assist cleanup after flooding that damaged homes and at times isolated entire towns. As Vacation Bible School workers prepared last Sunday night for the summer outreach event, a storm ripped the roof off the church building in Great Bend, Kansas last week. And, As the new school year is just around the corner, maybe your church is thinking about ways to serve the schools in your community.
by Lauren Keating | Jul 21, 2023 | Episodes
According to Americans United for Life, there are currently 25 states with an abortion ban of some sort. The sanctuary of Camp Creek Baptist Church in Taylors, South Carolina is gone — now only a charred shell. And, in a piece on Baptist Press, Matt Espenshade offers four tip to help make decisions. He’s a
pastor and former FBI agent.
by Lauren Keating | Jul 20, 2023 | Episodes
Answers in Genesis researcher and apologist Bodie Hodge doesn’t find the heat alarming. As public policy debates swirl around the issues of life, religious liberty and sexual orientation and gender identity, the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission’s (ERLC) president says there’s room for believers to be heard on the local and national level. And, when 71-year-old James Harper was baptized at Adairville Baptist Church a few weeks ago, it was the answer to more than 15 years of prayer from his friends and family, including his father-in-law.
by Lauren Keating | Jul 19, 2023 | Episodes
In June, the pro-life movement celebrated the one-year anniversary of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, the Supreme Court ruling that overturned Roe v. Wade. And, a Lifeway Bible study on Baptist Press talks about the importance of disciples making disciples.
by Lauren Keating | Jul 18, 2023 | Episodes
More state legislatures have enacted laws this year to protect minors and women, as well as to ensure competitive fairness in sports, in response to the transgender rights movement. Send Relief is helping feed refugees fleeing the escalating civil conflict in Sudan that international leaders say threatens a full-scale civil war. And, The IMB is asking for believers to pray for fellow believers in North Africa and the Middle East where Christian churches are illegal.
by Lauren Keating | Jul 17, 2023 | Episodes
African American Christians score 10 percent higher than all other Christians in spiritual vitality, a new scale of holistic spiritual health the American Bible Society introduced in its 2023 State of the Bible report. In an informative and encouraging discussion, a group of missions and prayer leaders took a look at the Asbury Awakening that happened earlier this year and the role prayer played in the movement. And, in a piece in the Baptist Press Toolbox, Danny Forshee writes, “Being maxed out will lead to burn out, and when you are burned out in ministry, you are unhealthy. Allow me to offer three practical tips to help you make some changes in your schedule so you can at least take one day off a week.”
by Lauren Keating | Jul 14, 2023 | Episodes
Jesus said the gates of hell will not prevail against His Church, but sleet and hail will keep many churchgoers out of the pew on a Sunday. Karen Abercrombie, who stole hearts as prayer warrior Miss Clara in “War Room,” is known to a select few as “Mama Karen.” And, Even amid despair, God has a plan. A Lifeway Bible Study talks about how God rescues His people.
by Lauren Keating | Jul 13, 2023 | Episodes
What is being called a generational flood is threatening much of New England. Out of the 7,100 languages that exist, the Bible has been translated into more than 700, making it the most-translated book in the world. And, how can you live so that you are a light for Christ? Vance Pitman offers three ideas in BP Toolbox piece.
by Lauren Keating | Jul 12, 2023 | Episodes
What is being called a generational flood is threatening much of New England. Out of the 7,100 languages that exist, the Bible has been translated into more than 700, making it the most-translated book in the world. And, how can you live so that you are a light for Christ? Vance Pitman offers three ideas in BP Toolbox piece.
by Lauren Keating | Jul 11, 2023 | Episodes
Two Supreme Court cases should have a positive impact on religious liberty in the U-S, according to a leading public policy group. Logged on to the new Threads app yet? It’s the competitor to Twitter that is connected to Instagram. And, were you able to make it to church yesterday? If not, Chuck Lawless offers some encouragement for you when it comes being a part of a local church.
by Lauren Keating | Jul 10, 2023 | Episodes
Two Supreme Court cases should have a positive impact on religious liberty in the U-S, according to a leading public policy group. Logged on to the new Threads app yet? It’s the competitor to Twitter that is connected to Instagram. And, were you able to make it to church yesterday? If not, Chuck Lawless offers some encouragement for you when it comes being a part of a local church.
by Lauren Keating | Jul 7, 2023 | Episodes
How should the church engage a culture marred by effects of gun violence? A Philadelphia pastor says pray, study the culture around you and engage it with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Mark Morton was a sergeant with the Reno Police Department when he was called in 2005 out of the congregation to be the pastor of Granite Hills Church in Reno, Nevada. And, do you want to create a healthy culture in your church, organization or home? An article in the Baptist Press Toolbox looks to the culture Christ created as He led his disciples.
by Lauren Keating | Jul 6, 2023 | Episodes
The U.S. Supreme Court delivered a First Amendment victory Friday (June 30) to a Christian designer who objects to creating custom websites for same-sex weddings. The first time she retired, in 2002, Dr. Rebekah Naylor, a longtime missionary surgeon, came home to Texas after 35 years in India to care for her mother, who was ailing. And, Kentucky Baptist leader Todd Gray believers there are certain things every leader must do. In a piece on Baptist Press, he says leaders must solve problems.
by Lauren Keating | Jul 5, 2023 | Episodes
A group of missionaries are meeting in Central Asia this summer looking for specific opportunities to share their faith. Scripture records women’s work in the Old and New Testaments, detailing the work of midwives, prophetesses, warriors, a judge, teachers, mothers and others. And, Pastor Conner Smith writes about being missional.
by Lauren Keating | Jul 4, 2023 | Episodes
Much of the nation is moving at a slower pace today as Americans celebrate the nation’s Independence Day with get-together and cookouts. With artificial intelligence becoming an increasingly hot-button issue and other technologies being developed at a rapid rate, representatives from the 2023 SBC Committee on Resolutions hope the resolution “On Artificial Intelligence and Emerging Technologies,” will serve as a “timely” statement on the topic. And, on May 19, 1967, the plane of Eugene “Red” McDaniel, Mike’s father, had been shot down over Vietnam. For 1,024 days, McDaniel’s family waited for news. Not knowing yet if he was dead or alive in a North Vietnamese prison, they hoped and prayed for good news.
