The pews of First Baptist Church, Charleston, South Carolina, were filled to celebrate newly appointed International Mission Board missionaries on Wednesday, Feb. 5. Thirty-nine missionaries preparing to live and serve among unreached peoples shared brief testimonies with the crowd and welcomed prayers offered on their behalf. Marshall Blalock, pastor of the church and IMB trustee, […]

Passing the baton to a younger generation
When Tyler Sterchi was fairly fresh out of college and interviewing for his first church staff position, the pastor quizzing him said, if Sterchi were called, he would become the next pastor of that church. Twelve years later, it happened. That’s what you call long-term planning. It’s also a well-executed hand-off of leadership, something mostly […]

SBC25 pre-registration, childcare registration now open
Messenger pre-registration and childcare registration for the 2025 SBC Annual Meeting in Dallas this June opened Monday, Feb. 3. Based on the hotel reservations already made through the SBC housing system, messenger totals this year could reach upwards of 15,000. The last time the Convention met in Dallas was 2018 when 9,632 messengers attended. At […]

Trump endorses ‘male and female,’ state pushes back on Executive Order
Washington, D. C. | President Donald Trump’s flurry of executive actions his first week in office has drawn mixed reviews from evangelicals. Initiatives to combat radical gender ideologies and protect pro-life demonstrators sparked praise while facets of Trump’s immigration crackdown met with caution in some cases and opposition in others. The president’s other executive actions […]

Breaking tradition to reach generations
Springfield | When Paul Cooper graduated from seminary his plan was to become a church planter. “I had zero desire to ever pastor a traditional church,” he said. But God had different plan. Cooper became pastor of Marshall Baptist Church, which he described as “the most textbook traditional Southern Baptist church you could imagine.” The […]

IBDR wraps up ice storm recovery efforts
Illinois | Volunteers from Illinois Baptist Disaster Relief (IBDR) spent most of January helping downstate neighbors recover from a massive snow and ice storm. At least 95 IBDR volunteers were involved in the efforts that brought nearly 400 job requests and resulted in two salvation decisions by homeowners. The state’s southernmost counties were covered in […]

Church leaders cautioned on coming population decline
Springfield | Preparing for the coming demographic cliff and what it means for churches was part of Tuesday afternoon’s keynote speaker Kelly Kannwischer’s discussion at the Illinois Leadership Summit. The January 21-22 summit focused on building future ready churches by recognizing trends and differences in generational leadership in light of the timelessness of the gospel […]

Phil’s $5 deal
Carbondale | When Phil Nelson walks on a university campus, he is always looking for a student to talk with about Jesus. His game plan is simple. He and a few students and friends set up a circle of camp chairs with a sandwich board sign. The sign offers, “Ask me two questions about God […]
Abuse in the SBC
With SATF recommendations approved, the hard part begins
“The recommendations before you are not from Guidepost, they are from the task force,” Bruce Frank, chairman of the Sexual Abuse Task Force told messengers as they prepared to vote on a set of history-making recommendations at the SBC Annual Meeting June 14-15 in Anaheim, Calif. The task force was assigned and authorized by action […]
IBSA President on abuse response: From difficulties to determination
A 288-page report on any subject is daunting, but as a Southern Baptist, pastor, and president of IBSA, I felt a responsibility to keep the report open all last week and slowly read through it. I made notes and wrote down personal thoughts, and as I reviewed them afterwards, I was surprised to discover a […]
Former Illinois pastor accused; two relationships occurred in youth ministry in 2002
Former Illinois pastor Wes Feltner is accused by two women of abusive relationships, one of them sexual, when he was their youth minister in Indiana 17 years ago. The charges came to light as Feltner is lead candidate for the pastorate of First Baptist Church of Clarksville, Tennessee. The story was reported by the Clarksville […]
Longtime Chicago pastor resigns; sexual abuse prior to ministry among reasons
Charles Lyons resigned as pastor of Armitage Baptist Church in Chicago following what church leaders called a “corrective leave of absence” that began in October 2018. Read…
Resources
- Protect your children, protect your church https://www.ibsa.org/3327-2/
- Caring Well https://caringwell.com/
News Stories

Fighting wildfires: Illinois couple’s experience in Maui recovery informs California teams
California | As wildfires continue to burn across Los Angeles County destroying thousands of acres, Send Relief and California Southern Baptist Disaster Relief (CSBDR) have boots on the ground. In mid-January Send Relief had a chaplain team serving at each of the area’s two Disaster Recovery Centers set up for organizations such as FEMA to […]

Retreat for deaf women at Sallateeska
Lake Sallateeska Baptist Camp will serve as the site for a retreat especially for deaf women. The event set for March 21-23 is led by Unveiled Heart and Breakthrough Corner Ministries. It focuses on soul care. With about 400,000 deaf and hearing-impaired people in Illinois, the need for ministry is great. Special speakers include the […]

Pro-life advocates mark anniversary, gains
Washington, D. C. | The month of January saw a slate of mostly encouraging actions for the pro-life movement including the closure of abortion facilities in Illinois, restoration of the Mexico City Policy, the March for Life, and more. Jan. 24 marked the 52nd Annual March for Life in Washington, D.C. which included several Southern […]

ERLC calls pending ruling ‘monumental’ for transitioning minors
Washington, D.C. | Protestors on both sides of the debate massed outside the U.S. Supreme Court building Dec. 4, chanting and singing “Sweet Caroline” loud enough to drown out the reporters’ live shots. Inside, the justices heard arguments in a case which will determine the constitutionality of a Tennessee law banning gender transition procedures for […]