Lonnie Wilkey

BRENTWOOD, Tenn. (BP) -- Tennessee Baptists have elected the first African American president in the convention's history – Memphis pastor Michael C. Ellis. Ellis, pastor of Impact Baptist Church, ran unopposed and was elected unanimously by the 958 registered messengers during the TBC annual meeting, Nov. 11-12 at Brentwood Baptist Church. Ellis served as vice president of the state convention in 2012.

NASHVILLE (BP) -- For 17 years pastor Breonus Mitchell has preached to his congregation at Greater Grace Temple Community Church that they need to rely on faith in God to get them through the pain and suffering of life.

NASHVILLE (BP) -- For 17 years pastor Breonus Mitchell has preached to his congregation at Greater Grace Temple Community Church that they need to rely on faith in God to get them through the pain and suffering of life. Now, the Baptist pastor is choosing to put into practice what he has preached for so long. On June 29, Mitchell's wife of 17 years, LaKisha, died at the age of 40 after an 18-month battle with breast cancer. She left behind her husband and two children, Breonus Jr. (B. J.), 11, and Brennon, 1. [QUOTE@right@180="Tragedies remind us that God has no favorites… None of us are exempt from suffering."
-- Breonus Mitchell, pastor of Greater Grace Temple Community Church]Mitchell, who lives with his boys in Nashville, Tenn., acknowledged that he and his oldest son especially have had some difficult days in the month since his wife's death. He has had to grapple with the question, "How do you serve a God and preach His Gospel when He did not heal your wife?" Mitchell has realized that "it is okay to question God." And though he may never have all his questions answered, he feels the presence of God in his life. "I sensed the Holy Spirit speaking to me, saying, 'You didn't ask 'why?' when other members of your congregation passed away. Why are you doing it now?'" During his personal Bible study Mitchell has been going through the book of 1 Peter which he describes as "a good book on suffering from the New Testament perspective. Suffering is a part of life," he said. Mitchell's experience has reminded him that "God has no favorites. "As preachers we can be so engrossed in who we are that we can be deceived into thinking that God has favorites," Mitchell said. "Tragedies remind us that God has no favorites. None of us are exempt from suffering. It also reminds us that we are human." During the process Mitchell has learned some "do's and don'ts" of ministering and being ministered to. Among them: -- Be sensitive in what and how you communicate. He noted numerous people told him and his wife that God would heal her. That hurt, Mitchell said, because the couple had read the doctor's reports and knew the diagnosis. "We believed God could heal if He chose but we understood in our faith that we don't have the right to say what He will do," he said. "He reserves the right to will what He wants to will."

DANDRIDGE, Tenn. (BP) -- For many of the members at Front Street Baptist Church in Statesville, N.C., the events of Oct. 2, 2013 will be etched in their memories for the rest of their lives. [IMGONLY=38274@left@180]      On that day nearly a year ago, six senior adults were killed and 12 others severely injured in a bus accident near Dandridge, Tenn., that also claimed the lives of two other people.

DANDRIDGE, Tenn. (BP) -- For many of the members at Front Street Baptist Church in Statesville, N.C., the events of Oct. 2, 2013 will be etched in their memories for the rest of their lives.

BARTLETT, Tenn. (BP) — Messengers to the 138th annual meeting of the Tennessee Baptist Convention at Faith Baptist Church in Bartlett, Tenn., overwhelmingly adopted the report of the Vision 2021 Team which included 10 recommendations. Among the recommendations was the adoption of a new vision statement and seven core values, along with an affirmation of […]

BRENTWOOD, Tenn. (BP) -- Johnny Pons has experienced God's sense of humor.       Pons grew up around Southeastern Conference football, pulling for Vanderbilt and Alabama, having been reared in Hendersonville, Tenn., and its First Baptist Church.

BRENTWOOD, Tenn. (BP) -- Johnny Pons has experienced God's sense of humor.       Pons grew up around Southeastern Conference football, pulling for Vanderbilt and Alabama, having been reared in Hendersonville, Tenn., and its First Baptist Church.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP) -- Leaders of the Baptist Collegiate Ministry at Vanderbilt University are determining how a new policy will affect the BCM ministry on campus.

HENDERSONVILLE, Tenn. (BP) — Messengers to the 137th annual meeting of the Tennessee Baptist Convention adopted an increased budget for 2011-12 and approved two new partnerships Nov. 15-16 at First Baptist Church in Hendersonville, Tenn. Messengers also said, through a resolution, they are opposed to a name change for the Southern Baptist Convention. An update […]