Archived Episodes

An Arkansas family is making an impact for the Gospel. Joy Ledbetter’s family carried out her wishes recently and sold the family farm that had been in the family for more than 100 years. The announcement of that gift comes just days before the Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church. Sunday has been set aside to pray for fellow believers in persecution. And, would you consider your church a messy church? Relationships are hard. Change is hard. Those are elements of the Gospel producing fruit in the local church.

With many of their colleagues on alert for potential deployment to growing hot spots near Israel, more than 365 chaplains and spouses gathered to train in evangelism and pray for peace in the Middle East. A bill that would allow Ukraine’s courts to outlaw Orthodox churches that maintain ties with Russia does not threaten religious freedom in Ukraine, a key Baptist leader there told Baptist Press. And, In a piece in the Baptist Press Toolbox, Mark Dance asks about your motives behind your use of social media.

The newly-elected Speaker of the House of Representatives is a Southern Baptist and served as a trustee of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission. Rep. Mike Johnson (R-La.) was elected to the speakership on Wednesday. Meta’s social media platforms including Facebook and Instagram intentionally target children and teens with features that harm mental health, attorneys general in 42 states and Washington D.C. said in lawsuits Oct. 24. And, in the Baptist Press Toolbox, there’s a prayer guide you can use as you think about the conflict in the Middle East.

Pro-life advocacy ministry Stand For Life is touring college campuses to engage students, churches and communities in building a society that values and protects all of humanity as created in God’s image. Jason Holly, the youth minister at First Baptist Church in Elizabethton, Tennessee, remembers when Texas Rangers rookie outfielder Evan Carter was a boy playing in the local Grasscutter football league for 6-8-year-olds. And, in 1988, 75 New York City churches gathered to pray. Eventually the number grew to 2,000 churches.

Relief workers continue to bring gospel hope to people dealing with grief and trauma in the wake of war. Religious freedom advocates lamented the loss of civilian lives in the Israel-Hamas war, antisemitism and Islamophobia on the 25th anniversary of the International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA) Oct. 23. And, why does God allow suffering in the world? If you’ve wondered this, a Lifeway Bible Study challenges you to make sure you’re asking the right question.

Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary President Danny Akin has been “vitally interested” in Israel his entire ministry. And, In the Baptist Press Toolbox, Kie Bowman asks if what the Bible says about prayer and worry is still applicable today. His answer is yes.

The newly-elected Speaker of the House of Representatives is a Southern Baptist and served as a trustee of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission. Rep. Mike Johnson (R-La.) was elected to the speakership on Wednesday. Meta’s social media platforms including Facebook and Instagram intentionally target children and teens with features that harm mental health, attorneys general in 42 states and Washington D.C. said in lawsuits Oct. 24. And, in the Baptist Press Toolbox, there’s a prayer guide you can use as you think about the conflict in the Middle East.

The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary celebrated Albert Mohler, Jr.’s 30th Anniversary as President last week. Home to both hipsters and the homeless, Portland is recognized as the least religious city in America by the Public Religion Research Institute’s American Values Atlas. And, in a piece in the Baptist Press Toolbox, church leader Todd Gray writes, “I remember hearing someone describe Adrian Rogers, former pastor of Bellevue Baptist Church in Memphis, as a “weeper.”

Even as daily bombing raids continue, Send Relief is providing resources to Israelis and Palestinians affected by the conflict. The growth of the Hispanic population in North America has accelerated tremendously in the past decade. And, Jesus said faith the size of a mustard seed could move a mountain, but He was also known to pray through the night (Luke 6:12), for hours in the early morning (Mark 1:35-6), and sometimes for days at a time (Matthew 4: 1-2).