Springfield | Dr. Scott Foshie was elected to serve as the 12th Executive Director of the Illinois Baptist State Association by the IBSA Board of Directors meeting in Springfield December 9. Foshie will succeed Nate Adams, who will retire April 1 after 20 years’ service. Foshie will serve as Executive Director Elect until then, allowing […]
100 and counting: The vitality of Baptist pillars cited at centennial
Just as messengers at the national convention did in Dallas, Illinois Baptist messengers at the Annual Meeting in Springfield expressed support for the century-old pillars of Southern Baptist work — the Baptist Faith and Message and Cooperative Program — uniting factors in our shared ministry. Several speakers held them up as key to the effective […]
Register now for the Illinois Leadership Summit
This year’s ILS theme, The Long Climb: Doing the Hard Work to Reach the Next Generation, is for leaders who refuse to coast. Register now for the January 20-21 summit at the IBSA Building in Springfield and you’ll have the opportunity to reconnect with voices like Nate Adams, Andy Addis, Seth Conerly, and Rayden Hollis, […]
Week of Prayer: IMB and Chilean missionaries cast vision to reach islands
EDITOR’S NOTE: This year’s Week of Prayer for International Missions in the Southern Baptist Convention is Nov. 30-Dec. 7. Each year’s Lottie Moon Christmas Offering for International Missions supplements Cooperative Program giving to support Southern Baptists international missionaries’ initiatives in sharing the Gospel. Forty remote islands in southern Chile have little gospel knowledge and access, but Lord […]
Scott Foshie named as IBSA Executive Director candidate: Board vote Dec. 9
Springfield, IL | Dr. Scott Foshie will be presented to the Illinois Baptist State Association (IBSA) Board of Directors as the nominee for the position of Executive Director. A special Board meeting has been called for Tuesday, December 9, at 10:00 a.m. in the IBSA Building’s Auditorium. Foshie was selected by a search committee of […]
‘God has put us in this place’, says missionary couple
When Jeffrey and Theresa Stafford got engaged, he drew two large circles on a map of the Amazon and mailed it to her with a note. God willing, he wrote, our family will one day live and work in one of these places. Today the Staffords, along with their four children, serve as International Mission […]
New church partnerships to build campus ministries
Springfield | “We want to challenge churches to take college ministry to the next level,” IBSA Executive director Nate Adams told messengers at the November 4-5 Annual Meeting. A year earlier, an inquiry by a messenger at a floor mic had sparked exploration of expanded ministry on campuses in Illinois. Currently IBSA supports outreach to […]
The ‘bro’ awakening: Young men surpass women in church attendance
USA | Are the winds of revival blowing across the nation? More specifically, is there an awakening of young people here and abroad right now? Pastors citing increased church attendance after the shooting death of Christian political activist Charlie Kirk would say yes. Two national polls just before that event appear to agree that something […]
News Stories
Annual Church Needs Survey seeks input
The 2025 IBSA Church Needs Survey is now seeking input from pastors, ministry staff, and volunteer leaders from cooperating churches. The short survey, conducted every fall, provides valuable insight into the ministry help and missional opportunities churches value most from their state network. The results, released in late winter alongside statewide Annual Church Profile results, […]
Nine churches welcomed by IBSA
Springfield, IL | Nine newly cooperating churches were welcomed into the Illinois Baptist State Baptist Association on Tuesday evening at the November 4-5, 2025 Annual Meeting by the 381 registered messengers and 111 visitors who were present. In the months and weeks prior to the meeting, their leaders completed paperwork to become “cooperating churches” and […]
Giving Tuesday
Did God impact your life at Lake Sallateeska or Streator Baptist Camp? Would you give so a student can experience that same move of God in his or her young life? This year, for Giving Tuesday, we’re asking you to SEND A STUDENT TO CAMP. For as little as $40 you can help a child […]
BCHFS: Many stories of inspiration
Delivering the Baptist Children’s Home and Family Services (BCHFS) report at the Annual Meeting, Executive Director Kevin Carrothers provided inspiration to messengers through stories of faithfulness, hope, and sacrifice. Carrothers expressed his gratitude for Cheryl Dorsey, who was completing her service as BCHFS Trustee Secretary after six years, and announced the death of former staff […]
BF&M 2000
BF&M Article 18: In the beginning God created… family
At the apex of God’s creative workweek, we find him crafting a man, then a woman, and directing them to “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it” (Gen. 1:28). It might surprise younger Baptists to know that Article 18 wasn’t included in the 1925 BF&M. Or the 1963 version. It was added […]
BF&M Articles 15, 16, 17: Our dual citizenship
Some nations allow dual citizenship. Citizens can enjoy all the rights and privileges of their nation while pledging allegiance to another nation as well, so long as they keep up their obligations (and pay taxes, I suppose). The United States does not prohibit dual citizenship, but if you want to enter the country, you must […]
BF&M Articles 13 & 14: What’s temporary vs. what’s lasting
Those unfamiliar with the biblical use of the word steward may find it helpful to substitute the word manager. The Bible teaches that God owns everything, and that Christians, God’s people, are temporary managers of all that he entrusts into their lives. Managers are not owners. They are caretakers, with delegated responsibility for the treasures […]
BF&M Articles 11 & 12: Let’s talk about Jesus
The first official SBC-sanctioned witnessing training I received was called “Lay Evangelism School.” A leader from the state convention came to our church and taught us how to use a “survey method” to share the gospel on a Saturday morning. Then we went out and did it. We knocked on doors in the neighborhood and […]