By: Waylon Bailey Last week First Baptist Church called a congregational meeting for Wednesday, March 19, at 6:15 PM to hear a report from our Strategy Planning Team (SPT) concerning our building project. Last October, First Baptist Church entered into a capital campaign called Rise Up! to raise funds for our new building project. At the same time, we hired …
LIFE app: My Positive Plan for Lent or Easter or Life
By: Waylon Bailey This is an interesting week in south Louisiana, parts of south Alabama and a few other places in the world. Apart from these areas, the strange phenomenon of Mardi Gras is not widely followed. Mardi Gras or “Fat Tuesday” is celebrated the days and the day before the solemn day of Ash Wednesday. Ash Wednesday begins Lent, …
New Sermon Series for Easter Season
By: Waylon Bailey The cross of Jesus Christ is the central event in all of history. I am thankful to have the opportunity to preach through Easter Sunday about the cross. In the past, I have often preached from the Gospels relating the actual events of the crucifixion. In the coming weeks, I plan to preach from other texts in …
It’s Time for Humble Service
By: Waylon Bailey How do we follow the commands of Christ as given in the Sermon on the Mount? While all of His commands are difficult, the area of motivation is especially difficult. Jesus told his disciples to be motivated by love and obedience to God. For Jesus, religious devotion should flow from the heart. He wanted His disciples to …
Must I Love My Enemies?
By: Waylon Bailey The greatest commandment is for me the most difficult command. When Jesus told us to love those who hate and despise us, He gave an amazing commandment. How do we do good to our enemies and pray for those who persecute us (Matthew 5:44)? How do we bless those who curse us, and pray for those who …
What Will Church Be Like In 2044?
By: Waylon Bailey I spent several days this week joining with other pastors of similar size churches across the Southern Baptist convention. As usual with these kinds of gatherings, we networked, fellowshipped, and discussed common problems. While most of the problems are exactly the kind that you could think of, there were several that you might be surprised that we …
Getting Even is Trending
By: Waylon Bailey You don’t have to look far to know “getting even” is trending in America. We have become a nation of victims who need to punish other people for what we’ve experienced. Look at how often people sue one another, and worse, notice how often a disgruntled employee returns to the place of employment with a gun. How …
Does Church Make A Difference?
By: Waylon Bailey Sometimes we wonder if what we do each week is doing any good. To hear some non-Christians speak is to assume that our evangelism, discipleship, and service ministries are useless and without merit. Does going to church week by week make a difference? You can make a very strong case that the casual church goer (someone who …
Getting Ready for Church
By: Waylon Bailey Most people who read this blog and receive my LifeApps go to church. Have you ever thought of going to church this way? When you arrive at your church’s parking lot, pause in your automobile and pray. Ask God what He would like as you enter the presence of God with the people of your church. By: …
Ministries That Make A Difference
By: Waylon Bailey Over the last two weeks I have written about the ministry of deacons and about the ministries of First Baptist Covington in general. Today I want to get specific about several ministries that make a difference. The place where I live and minister is blessed with a number of ministries which are making a real difference. From …