To me, when I study the New Testament, especially the book of Acts, it appears that baptism is the first act of obedience a believer takes after they are saved. It is so important because it is the first time individuals will share about the death...

What is every college student on your campus looking for? What is their deepest desire – the thing that they long for? What is the thing that often drives their decisions? Oftentimes, it’s the desire to belong.   ...

For several years now, I have been greatly burdened by the declining number of baptisms across the Southern Baptist Convention. I believe the baptism numbers serve as one of the best indicators of evangelism in our churches. Jesus came to seek and...

Each year, the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina places an emphasis on the North Carolina Missions Offering (NCMO), a special offering that supports the ministries of N.C. Baptist Men (NCBM), church planting, mission camps, associational...

As my wife and I were shopping at Walmart, I noticed the diversity in the people around me. People with many shades of melanin. People from all around the world. People with heritages different from my own. As I observed them, my heart sank...

Most people wake up in the morning to go to work. During rush hour, cars are bumper-to-bumper while people on public transportation often are jammed-packed like sardines.   From the beginning of time, humans have...

I grew up in historically black churches. I planted an inner-city church. Now I pastor a multi-ethnic congregation, and I work with planters in urban communities around the world. But I only know one black missionary serving on the field today...

One of our younger leaders in North Carolina recently told me about discussions he has participated in with other young ministers interested in church planting. He said the conversations often feature a popular missions and church planting network...

There was a time when the question of church membership was not much of a question at all. Jump back a generation or two, and nearly every church in the country had a roster of members.   Now the question, however...

According to LifeWay Research, 77 percent of churchgoers say they take an intentional day of rest, with most doing so on Sunday. This idea of a Sabbath dates back to the Old Testament, even to the creation week itself.   Societies and...

There are Christians who say, “What a cross to bear! How long am I going to suffer?” They might think that carrying their cross means surviving a long-standing difficult situation, enduring abuse by another person or suffering from a...

I didn’t think much about hotels until I started working at one.   Crisp linens, a TV, hopefully breakfast and some of those tiny lotions – what else was there to think about?   A whole lot more...

If you only read the headlines that appear in the media, you would conclude the sky is falling on American Christianity. That is not true. Glenn Stanton has summarized several legitimate studies of religion in America to give us a hopeful...

Sitting in a rocking chair on a balcony at Ridgecrest Conference Center near Black Mountain, N.C., I listened to teenagers below sing the popular worship songs “What a Beautiful Name” and “No Longer Slaves.”   ...

Recently I spent time with two old friends. Both are grieving.   One just lost his mother to cancer. The other lost his wife – also to cancer – three years ago. His best friend died of a massive heart attack a few weeks ago...