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Georgia Baptist ministry wives pampered and encouraged at retreat

Ladies enjoy arcade games during the 2025 Ministry Wives retreat in Buford, Ga. (GBMB/Krista Roe)
BUFORD, Ga. — The Pastor Wellness ministry of the Georgia Baptist Mission Board welcomed the wives of more than 230 ministry leaders to Lanier Islands Legacy Lodge in Buford last month for a retreat designed specifically to cater to their needs. The ladies gathered on Jan. 23-25 to be renewed and fed spiritually, emotionally, and physically.
Youth ministers engage in an event at the Conclave conference in Chattanooga. (Photo/Conclave)
Conclave conference draws nearly 800 participants to Chattanooga
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — Nearly 800 youth ministers and spouses from 21 different states attended this year’s three-day Conclave conference in Chattanooga last month.
Pastor James Amos poses beside the sign for New Providence Baptist Church of Culloden. (Photo/Jay Sanders via New Providence Baptist Church of Culloden)
New Providence Baptist Church of Culloden launches at site of former Culloden Baptist Church
CULLODEN, Ga. — Sounds of praise are echoing again from the former Culloden Baptist Church on Church Street in Culloden. Renamed New Providence Baptist Church of Culloden, the 100-year-old church has reopened and held its first service Sunday, Jan. 26, 2025.
Bill Eastwood speaks to Georgia Baptist Mission Board colleagues in May 2024. (Index/Henry Durand)
Obituary: William 'Bill' Eastwood remembered as a joyful servant by friends, colleagues
MACON, Ga. — Friends and colleagues at the Georgia Baptist Mission Board mourned the loss of William “Bill” Russell Eastwood on Thursday, as news spread of his passing. Eastwood, 73, of Macon, peacefully passed away on Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2025. He was a longtime staffer with the Georgia Baptist Health Foundation and the Georgia Baptist Mission Board.
Students gather for a group photo at Discovery Weekend 2025 in Barnesville, Ga. (Photo/GBMB)
Mission-minded Georgia college students gather at Discovery Weekend 2025
BARNESVILLE, Ga. — About 100 mission-minded students from across Georgia gathered last weekend at First Baptist Barnesville for Discovery Weekend 2025. The event is a chance for those students to narrow down where they are called to go during Send Me Now summer mission opportunities.
Students perform during a worship service at REELfest in Jonesboro, Ga., Saturday, Jan. 25, 2025. (GBMB/William Murray)
Nearly 400 students from 60 churches gather for music and worship training at REELfest
JONESBORO, Ga. — Close to 400 students and volunteers from 60 churches gathered at First Baptist Church in Jonesboro on Friday and Saturday, Jan. 24-25, for REELfest. The Georgia Baptist Mission Board’s weekend event provides an opportunity for students from 6th grade through college to come together to learn and perform using their musical gifts.
Baptist Life

Pinnacle Retreat Center celebrates growing impact in 2024

A young man is baptized in the lake at Pinnacle Retreat Center. (Photo/Courtesy Han Vision Church)
CLAYTON, Ga. — Pinnacle Retreat Center, nestled in the picturesque northeast Georgia mountains, saw increased visitors in 2024 as more people took advantage of the site for their ministry events. Beth Ann Williams, lead strategist for Georgia Baptist Women, reported that more than 5,500 guests visited the retreat last year, representing a 13.6% increase from 2023. Of those, she said, 74% were Georgia Baptists.
CHARLESTON, S.C. — International Mission Board trustees approved the appointment of 39 new full-time, fully funded missionaries and unanimously elected the next vice president of global engagement during their meeting Tuesday and Wednesday, Feb. 4-5, in Charleston. Trustees met in conjunction with a Sending Celebration for new appointees hosted by First Baptist Church, Charleston.
At age 78, Miss Gay has thrown caution to the wind. She tried her very first Pop Tart last week - and loved it. “I ate the whole thing!” she exclaimed.
DANVILLE, Ky. (BP) — Signs emerge when a church is in trouble. Memberships and baptisms dip. The sounds of youth and children barely, if ever, echo through the halls. Building maintenance is deferred for longer periods of time. 
Well, the flu bug has hit our household these past few weeks. So far, three of the four granddaughters have had it, along with my daughter. I'm praying that our oldest granddaughter, Wayne, and I will be able to avoid catching it. The flu hit sweet Liza the worst. She hardly moved from the sofa for about seven or eight days.
Georgia
Georgia Baptist Mission Board Public Affairs Representative Mike Griffin introduces Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, left, during the 2023 Pastors Day at the Capitol. (Index/Henry Durand, File)

Raffensperger looking to feds to withdraw election lawsuit

ATLANTA – Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger is asking the nation’s new attorney general to withdraw a federal lawsuit challenging election reform legislation the General Assembly passed in 2021.

Both chambers of Georgia General Assembly to focus on protecting women's sports

ATLANTA – Sex and school sports will be a priority for both chambers of Georgia’s General Assembly this year, with House Speaker Jon Burns announcing Tuesday that his caucus will have its own version of legislation banning athletes born male from participating in girls’ and women’s sports.

Doug Collins confirmed as VA secretary

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Senate voted Tuesday to confirm former U.S. Rep. Doug Collins of Gainesville as secretary of veterans affairs.

Georgia lieutenant governor pushes to aid parents through tax credits

ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia's Republican lieutenant governor is renewing a push to expand child care tax credits. Lt. Gov. Burt Jones told The Associated Press on Tuesday that a Senate ally has introduced a bill to create a state income tax credit of up to $250 for every child under age 7, expand an existing tax credit for child care to give parents up to $300 more per child, and let employers claim a larger credit for investing in an on-site child care center.
Nation
Dairy cows stand in a field outside of a milking barn at the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Animal Disease Center research facility in Ames, Iowa, Aug. 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall, File)

Second type of bird flu detected in US dairy cows

Dairy cattle in Nevada have been infected with a new type of bird flu that's different from the version that has spread in U.S. herds since last year, Agriculture Department officials said Wednesday.

Trump urges Americans to 'bring God back into our lives' in National Prayer Breakfast speech

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Thursday that his relationship with religion had “changed” after a pair of failed assassination attempts last year, as he advocated at the National Prayer Breakfast at the Capitol for Americans to “bring God back" into their lives.

Rubio defends dismantling of USAID

GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday delivered a robust defense of the dismantling of the U.S. Agency for International Development.

Trump signs executive order to protect women in sports

President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Wednesday intended to ban athletes born male from participating in girls' and women’s sports.
World
Mexican National Guard members patrol along the Mexico-US border in Ciudad Juarez, Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Christian Chavez)

Mexico deploys the first of 10,000 National Guard troops to US border after Trump's tariff threat

CIUDAD JUÁREZ, Mexico (AP) — A line of Mexican National Guard and Army trucks rumbled along the border separating Ciudad Juárez and El Paso, Texas, on Wednesday, among the first of 10,000 troops Mexico has sent to its northern frontier following tariff threats by President Donald Trump.

Israel begins preparations for Gaza exodus as Egypt lobbies against Trump plan

CAIRO (AP) — Israel said on Thursday it has begun preparations for the departure of large numbers of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip in line with President Donald Trump's plan for the territory. Officials meanwhile said Egypt has launched a diplomatic blitz behind the scenes to try and head off the plan.

Ukraine troops capture 2 North Korean soldiers fighting for Russia

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — When Ukrainian soldiers captured two North Korean prisoners of war last month, it provided the first undeniable proof of Pyongyang’s direct involvement in the war against Ukraine. It also shed some light on the mindset and training of the conscripted North Korean soldiers sent to fight Russia’s war a continent away from their home.

Sweden's worst mass shooting leaves at least 11 dead, including the gunman

OREBRO, Sweden (AP) — Sweden's worst mass shooting left at least 11 people dead, including the gunman, and at least five seriously wounded at an adult education center west of Stockholm.
Perspectives
Since moving to Tennessee from Dallas, Texas, I always chuckle a bit when folks around Jackson complain about traffic problems. Admittedly, there are seasons when traffic is slower than usual around our little town, but it doesn’t compare to commutes of an hour or more.
It is not unusual for young men who serve on church staffs to reach a point in ministry and leadership development where they start thinking about becoming senior pastor of a church.   Not every senior pastor has his first ministry experience in a church staff position, but many will.
Jesus said, “You are my friends if you do what I command” (John 15:14). All Christians should want to be friends with God. But how good of a friend are we when we sin and grieve the Holy Spirit?
Alcoholism has its claws wrapped tightly around the souls of the small town I grew up in, here in the Amazon region of South America. There are very few people whose lives go untouched by the darkness and destruction it brings. Mario, too, was engulfed in the addiction.
Defining who a young adult is in your community is one more step toward connecting them in the church and making disciples.
Business
A U.S. Postal Service employee loads parcels outside a post office in Wheeling, Ill., on Jan. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh, File)

US Postal Service flip-flops on Hong Kong-China packages, lifting a ban imposed a day earlier

HONG KONG (AP) — The U.S. Postal Service is reversing course a day after placing a ban on all inbound mail and packages from China and Hong Kong. The post office announced Tuesday that it would no longer accept parcels from China and Hong Kong after the U.S. imposed an additional 10% tariff on Chinese goods and ended a customs exception that allowed small value parcels to enter the U.S. without paying tax.

Waffle House adds surcharge to eggs as massive bird flu outbreak leads to soaring prices

NEW YORK (AP) — The Waffle House restaurant chain is putting a 50 cent per egg surcharge in place temporarily due to the biggest bird flu outbreak in a decade. The Georgia company said that the resulting egg shortage has led to a dramatic increase in its costs.

Lawsuit alleges first deaths from disastrous 2023 train derailment in Ohio

A lawsuit alleging for the first time that people died because of the disastrous 2023 East Palestine train derailment has been filed ahead of Monday's second anniversary of the toxic crash near the Ohio-Pennsylvania border amid a flurry of new litigation.

Georgia Power wants to keep coal plants alive to meet electricity demand

ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia Power Co. says it wants to keep burning coal to meet what it forecasts as the state’s increasing electrical demand. Georgia’s only private electrical utility says electrical demand is forecast to grow rapidly in the state, with much of the jump coming from power-hungry data centers.

U.S. economy grows solid 2.3% from October to December, 2.8% for full year 2024

WASHINGTON (AP) — The American economy ended 2024 on a solid note with consumer spending continuing to drive growth. The Commerce Department reported Thursday that gross domestic product — the economy's output of goods and services — expanded at a 2.3% annual rate from October through December.
Sports
San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama (1) shoots around Atlanta Hawks Dominick Barlow during the first half Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Wembanyama hits decisive free throw as Spurs hold off Hawks 126-125 in Fox's debut

ATLANTA (AP) — Victor Wembanyama broke a tie with a free throw with 2.4 seconds left and De'Aaron Fox scored 24 points in his first game for San Antonio, leading the Spurs to a 126-125 victory over the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday night.

Young's fadeaway with 1.6 seconds left lifts Hawks to slump-busting 132-130 win over Pistons

DETROIT (AP) — Trae Young made a 23-foot fadeaway with 1.6 seconds left and scored 17 of his 34 points in the fourth quarter, lifting the Atlanta Hawks to a 132-130 win over the Detroit Pistons on Monday night.

New All-Stars Darius Garland and Evan Mobley help NBA-leading Cavaliers beat Hawks 137-115

CLEVELAND (AP) — Darius Garland scored 26 points and Evan Mobley had 16 points and 10 rebounds after both were named All-Star reserves, helping the NBA-leading Cleveland Cavaliers to a 137-115 win over the Atlanta Hawks on Thursday night.

Hawks forward Jalen Johnson to have season-ending shoulder surgery on torn labrum

ATLANTA (AP) — Atlanta forward Jalen Johnson plans to have shoulder surgery and miss the remainder of the season, a major blow to the struggling Hawks ’ efforts to remain in the Eastern Conference playoff race.