By Andy Hale Is it just me, or is it hard to believe that the COVID-19 Pandemic started over four years ago? What always perplexed me during the height of the pandemic was the politicization of it all. The same wave of people who urged Americans to display flags in solidarity after 9/11 became the same people who resisted masks, social distancing, and isolation.   “More than 90 percent of the threats I received were from people of faith. But when you actually know them and they go to church with you, it really throws you off-kilter. I’m not ready to talk about everything that happen ..read more

By Karen Morrow, CBF field personnel, Texas “Don’t be afraid. Do I act for God? Don’t you see, you planned evil against me but God used those same plans for my good, as you see all around you right now—life for many people. Easy now, you have nothing to fear; I’ll take care of you and your children.” -Genesis 50:20-21, MSG Throughout my life I have had different spiritual guides who have encouraged me in my Christian faith; the most unlikely was a new Muslim convert from the Middle Eastern unreached people group among whom we were called to work. Ayse and her family were political asylum seek ..read more

By John DeWitt Danny Steis is the Children and Youth Pastor at Yates Baptist Church in Durham, N.C. Like so many other youth ministers, Steis was challenged by the COVID-19 pandemic. “COVID Zooms were awkward. Many youth, children and families didn’t fully return, and something was just ‘lost’ when we resumed.”  However, the youth ministry at Yates was given new life through one student. “We had a youth who lives in the neighborhood surrounding the church join the group several years ago. She was facing some challenging things at the time. Her biological mother had just passed away, she ..read more

 By Jennifer Colosimo  Rev. Dr. Alan Shaw and his wife Michelle have found their footing. After several years as a part of a bigger church, their small group decided to plant their own. They founded Christ First Community Church inside rented space in Stone Mountain and grew from there. While that growth has seen them bouncing from location to location, it’s helped ground them in their mission to put ministry first.  This congregation felt called by God to serve their community, and nothing else matters as much. Two church members, Paul and Jeri Austin, founded Hugs & Hope ..read more

By John DeWitt Danny Steis is the Children and Youth Pastor at Yates Baptist Church in Durham, N.C. Like so many other youth ministers, Steis was challenged by the COVID-19 pandemic. “COVID Zooms were awkward. Many youth, children and families didn’t fully return, and something was just ‘lost’ when we resumed.”  However, the youth ministry at Yates was given new life through one student. “We had a youth who lives in the neighborhood surrounding the church join the group several years ago. She was facing some challenging things at the time. Her biological mother had just passed away, she ..read more

 By Jennifer Colosimo  Rev. Dr. Alan Shaw and his wife Michelle have found their footing. After several years as a part of a bigger church, their small group decided to plant their own. They founded Christ First Community Church inside rented space in Stone Mountain and grew from there. While that growth has seen them bouncing from location to location, it’s helped ground them in their mission to put ministry first.  This congregation felt called by God to serve their community, and nothing else matters as much. Two church members, Paul and Jeri Austin, founded Hugs & Hope ..read more

By Marv Knox After the United States military withdrew from Afghanistan in late summer of 2021, a wave of Afghan refugees began heading toward the San Francisco Bay Area, where Cooperative Baptist Fellowship field personnel Lita and Rick Sample prepared for them. The Samples didn’t have to ask who might need help; their local Afghan friends would tell them. And they didn’t need to ask how to get ready; they had been serving newly-arrived Afghans almost 20 years. Such is the benefit of long-term presence for CBF field personnel. Working alongside the same people for decades enabled the Samples ..read more

By Andy Hale Much has been made in the last decade of the “Nones” and “Dones.” However, well before these words entered our lexicon, the church was already experiencing rapid decline.   According to Gallup, religious participation in the United States hovered around 70% or higher from 1937 through 1999. However, religious participation has steadily declined at the turn of the century, with 9.2% of adults exiting each decade. To make it even more clear, the U.S. Mainline Protestant population was 31% in 1967 but 12% in 2022.  “Almost every large religious tradition has been trac ..read more

By Jennifer Colosimo Throughout January’s Martin Luther King, Jr., weekend, youth groups from CBF churches in Alabama, Georgia and Tennessee converged at First Baptist Church Huntsville for the 2024 Winter Youth Summit (WYS)—the sixth since its inception, and possibly the best yet.   Through meaningful worship, impactful speakers and informative, deep-study breakout sessions, this year’s Let Your Light Shine theme challenged students to be Christ’s light in their world back home. With 23 churches represented and nearly 500 attendees, the resulting light was bright and the future sho ..read more

By Marv Knox After the United States military withdrew from Afghanistan in late summer of 2021, a wave of Afghan refugees began heading toward the San Francisco Bay Area, where Cooperative Baptist Fellowship field personnel Lita and Rick Sample prepared for them. The Samples didn’t have to ask who might need help; their local Afghan friends would tell them. And they didn’t need to ask how to get ready; they had been serving newly-arrived Afghans almost 20 years. Such is the benefit of long-term presence for CBF field personnel. Working alongside the same people for decades enabled the Samples ..read more