Discipleship

Most groups in local churches don’t fall apart overnight. They slowly drift from life-giving to maintenance-driven. Leaders don’t usually quit because they don’t care anymore – they quit because the structure they are working inside can’t sustain long-term disciple-making.

BRENTWOOD, Tenn. — If discipleship were a test, the average churchgoer would pass – but not by much.

It’s spiritual warfare against the evangelist. That’s one reason—a reason we don’t often think about—that evangelism is hard.

But how do we put the lust within to death? The answer is only found in Scripture. We put lust to death in the same way we put all habitual sins in our hearts to death: by loving God and His design more than we love our sin (Colossians 3:1-17). A lust problem is a love for God problem.

BRANDON, Fla. – In 2012, Jason Millsaps, lead worship pastor at Bell Shoals Church, could barely swim 37 yards without gasping for air. Twelve years later, he stood on the starting line at the Ironman World Championship in Kona, Hawaii, the most grueling and prestigious one-day endurance event in the world.

NEW ORLEANS – Nearly 400 attendees from 18 states gathered at the 2026 Defend Apologetics Conference at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary to hear lectures about a variety of apologetics topics including the resurrection of Christ, intelligent design, artificial intelligence, suffering and creation. 

SOUTHPORT, N.C. — Many Christians make a New Year’s resolution to read the entire Bible during the year. One church in southeastern North Carolina did it during the first weekend of 2026.

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (BP) – The elliptical machine in 69-year-old Bob Stephens’ home gym is stretching its handlebars to hang three coats. A recumbent bike, various weights and a stationary rowing machine complete the 20-by-20-foot room.

Most have heard the ancient proverb, “Familiarity breeds contempt.” Some trace the pithy premise back to Aesop’s fable of a fox that lived in such proximity to a lion that he was terribly afraid. Over time, though, the interaction between the animals became more casual. Soon, the fox strolled up to the lion, only to be devoured as a result.

MARTIN, Tenn. (BP) – Jason Simpson remembers the “aha” moment for his son, Ty.