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National CP receipts 5% below budget for February

March 19, 2025 By Baptist Press

Cooperative Program

Nashville, Tenn. | National Cooperative Program giving was 5.05% below the budget goal in February, while designated giving was just over 7% below the same number from last year. Southern Baptists gave just over $18 million through CP during the fifth month of the fiscal year. The budget target was $19 million. Year-to-date CP receipts […]

DOJ ends SBC probe, no abuse database yet

March 12, 2025 By Baptist Press

Department of Justice

(Updated 3/13 2:45 p.m.) Nashville | The federal probe of the Southern Baptist Convention’s handling of sexual abuse claims has been closed, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) told SBC attorneys March 12. In a separate case, a former employee of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary was found guilty of falsifying notes submitted to the DOJ […]

Boswell to join Midwestern Seminary worship faculty

February 13, 2025 By Baptist Press

Matt Boswell at Sing Conference

Kansas City, Mo. | Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary has announced the addition of pastor and hymn writer Matt Boswell to the faculty as visiting worship leader and professor of worship ministries. Beginning in the fall 2025 semester, Boswell will join Midwestern Seminary’s efforts to train worship ministers for the Church and to equip pastors and […]

SBC25 pre-registration, childcare registration now open

February 3, 2025 By Baptist Press

SBC25 Dallas

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

January 31, 2025 By Baptist Press

President Trump

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 […]

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Featured Columns

Cross found in the rubble.

25 years after 9/11: A lot has changed. And not much.

Eric Reed

By the time you read this, many people will be talking about where they were when the Twin Towers fell 25 years ago. Bells will toll. Long lists of names will be read. We will remember, and never forget. The realization that its anniversary is upon us raises the question— Has anything really changed since […]

Scott Foshie and his father

Paying the ‘Faith Forward’

Scott Foshie

“The LORD is great and is highly praised; his greatness is unsearchable. One generation will declare your works to the next and will proclaim your mighty acts.”– Psalm 145:3-4 In August, Audra and I celebrated 25 years of marriage. After an anniversary dinner and dessert together, we came home and looked through our wedding photos. […]

What makes ministry successful?

Mark Goldman

As a psychologist and researcher, Angela Duckworth was puzzled why some intelligent and talented people persisted while others quit. Most of those she observed were probably far more gifted than I am, but raw talent was not a reliable predictor of success. What she found was one characteristic that repeatedly predicted success above raw talent—grit. […]

More Columns

3 partnerships in development

Illinois Baptist Staff

Springfield | With the inception of Scott Foshie’s leadership, IBSA is developing partnerships with three SBC mission boards, including an IMB partnership that promises to be the first of its kind in the convention. They are expected to bring additional missions engagement for churches in Illinois and opportunities for service outside the state. “Our partnership […]

News

Willy Rice

Prepping for Indianapolis: How to pray for Willy Rice, and more from our exclusive interview

Eric Reed

At the SBC Executive Committee meeting Sept. 20-21, recently elected convention President Willy Rice is expected to present several challenges to the 86-member panel about next steps to secure final approval of the constitutional amendment dubbed by its author Al Mohler the “Truth & Unity Amendment.” Passage by two-thirds majority of messengers meeting at the […]

Youth Encounter expands to 3 locations

Blackwell commits to ‘come alongside’ churches at Lifeway trustee meeting

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Mission

World Cup scores for digital witness

Illinois Baptist Staff

As the 2026 FIFA World Cup roared to a close and Spain left holding the trophy, Southern Baptist churches and missionaries around the world prayed for impact that outlasts the hardware. Southern Baptists mission boards joined churches and associations in digital and in-person outreach, as North America hosted the World Cup for the first time […]

IMB trustees appoint new missionaries, elect first woman chair

Metro East church plant hosts multiplication meeting

More Mission Stories

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