tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196026382024-03-05T12:25:05.373-06:00Laissez Les Bonne Nouvelle RoulerThis online journal is where I post thoughts about my life and ministry in New Orleans, Louisiana as we "Let the Good News Roll."Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger125125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19602638.post-89862089376801893132009-09-04T08:44:00.004-05:002009-09-04T09:04:07.164-05:00What Downtown N.O. Needs: A Church PlantAn article in the paper today predicts 4000 new apartment and condo units in downtown New Orleans within five years. That's in addition to the 2000 already in existence. That means that in five years, the population of downtown could triple from it's current level to as many as 18,000 people - and no church. This makes downtown one of the most strategic church planting needs in the city. So Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19602638.post-55628390232372259862009-09-02T08:53:00.003-05:002009-09-02T09:13:07.629-05:00Best Kept Secret in New OrleansLast night I stopped by a Bible study in a Metairie neighborhood that meets in a garage. I became aware of it after meeting with a young man who is planning on planting a church in the metro area early in 2010. He has some connections with several of the students from he and his wife's ministry in New Orleans prior to Hurricane Katrina.The Bible study had been meeting faithfully since the stormUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19602638.post-81294065266707974352009-06-23T14:40:00.002-05:002009-06-23T15:07:50.930-05:00Hot Enough For Ya?I've got to give a hand to my volunteer teams for the past three weeks. The temperature in New Orleans has been brutal with the heat index over 100 degrees nearly every day and still they have served and are serving strong. The heat has caused us to cut short some of our afternoon outreach in an effort to keep these kids hydrated and healthy. However, they are making the most of the time they Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19602638.post-86252824802392553542009-05-29T07:49:00.002-05:002009-05-29T08:08:23.890-05:00God On The Move In Central CityIf you really want to be part of something God is doing, I have a word of advice; try to keep up. That's how it feels with the church plant in Central City. We're having to stay on our toes as God moves in ways that are amazing. His actions demand our response and we often find ourselves picking up the pace in certain places and settling into a smooth rhythm in others with a sprinkle of Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19602638.post-43197090897879929662009-05-18T08:45:00.002-05:002009-05-18T09:26:56.957-05:00New Executive Director of MissionsChange comes slowly to New Orleans if it ever comes at all. Over a year ago, our association, the Baptist Association of Greater New Orleans, voted to adopt a new strategy for reaching the area with the gospel. Known as 2020 Vision, this strategy was a dramatic shift in traditional associational form and function. Part of the 2020 Vision included redefining the position of Director of MissionsUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19602638.post-88613706284465042862009-05-05T10:46:00.002-05:002009-05-05T11:04:20.065-05:00God Works Big Through Small ThingsDr. Ken Taylor just poked his head into my office to share with me the following story. Gentilly Baptist Church, where Dr. Taylor is pastor, spent some time this past Thursday praying for the community across from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and distributing door hangers. Friday night, Blake, one of the members of Gentilly Baptist was "dialed-in" to the Evangelism Response Center Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19602638.post-45146661860613692942009-05-04T09:17:00.004-05:002009-05-07T07:30:21.966-05:00My StoryFrom the time I was a boy I’ve loved comic books. The characters, the stories and the artwork all fed my vivid imagination. I had a list of heroes that I wanted to be like. Add to this the fact that I was raised in a very religious family. This introduced me to a whole new set of characters and stories of which Jesus was often playing the title role. To me, he was a lot like the comic book Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19602638.post-68393259146419038242009-04-17T09:54:00.002-05:002009-04-17T10:59:12.653-05:00People Are Fascinating, Talk to ThemFor the past several days I’ve been inundated with suggestions that I need to go to You Tube and watch the video of Susan Boyle singing on Britain’s Got Talent reality show. “It’s so amazing!” “It will blow you away!” “It will change your life!” “You’ll be able to see into the future!” Okay, maybe I exaggerated a bit there at the end, but nonetheless, friends, talk show host, news Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19602638.post-49996796410464074872009-04-13T08:14:00.003-05:002009-04-13T08:28:23.024-05:00BeautifulWow! That's the first thing that comes to mind when I think about this past Saturday's prayer walk at First Baptist Kenner. More than 100 members took time out of their weekend to assemble at the church before spreading out into south Kenner and some of Metairie. An estimated 5,000 homes were prayed for, representing around 13,500 people. Wow! The sight of that many people gathered together Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19602638.post-13389067167580908492009-04-06T09:27:00.004-05:002009-04-06T09:54:11.755-05:00"I Am So Happy With My Decision"That was one of the comments from an individual that made a decision to follow Christ after seeing a commercial from Southern Baptist about having a personal relationship with Jesus and then visiting a website where they were taken step by step through what it means to be a Christian. These commercials are running about 100 times a day as part of our efforts to share the gospel with the Greater Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19602638.post-1680447975145385082009-03-27T08:12:00.001-05:002009-03-28T17:38:43.876-05:00Exclusive and Unique Cannot Be the Same As…John Lennon bemoaned the fact that everybody’s talking about ism, ism, ism in his song “Give Peace a Chance.” Not much has changed regarding that sentiment since Lennon recorded his song during him and Yoko’s infamous Bed-in in 1969. Ironically, this idea that everyone should just abandon truth and embrace each other for the sake of peace has developed into a new ‘ism’- pluralism. Therefore, Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19602638.post-88128697476572909822009-03-23T08:34:00.002-05:002009-03-23T08:58:10.560-05:00New Church Plant in MetairieChurch planting is one of our biggest needs in the Greater New Orleans area post Katrina. The newest effort is being led by Jim Louviere, a church planting veteran. He is focusing on people in transition in the Metairie area north of I-10. This means that a lot of his work will be in apartment complexes, a notoriously unchurched part of any city. They are in the process now of conducting, Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19602638.post-55095105422993606822009-03-13T14:54:00.002-05:002009-03-13T15:02:32.270-05:00A Sad NoteI was informed a short while ago that Greg Pembo, pastor of Vieux Carre Assembly of God, passed away following a stroke earlier in the week. I met pastor Pembo only once but his reputation of being an authentic witness and a man of integrity was well known among those that spent any time serving in the French Quarter. Greg went from bar owner to preacher through the grace of Jesus Christ and Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19602638.post-48724206949271317282009-03-13T08:05:00.002-05:002009-03-13T08:22:16.901-05:00A Great Time in East-Central LouisianaI just returned from an On Mission Celebration for the OuachitaBaptist Association and it was a blessing. I enjoy spending time with fellow believers and sharing with them what God is doing in the New Orleans area. I also enjoy the ridiculous amount of delicious food that's placed before me. That reminds me, time to hit the gym. One of my favorite things about OMCs is spending time with the Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19602638.post-29841765041781070572009-02-25T09:20:00.004-06:002009-02-25T09:59:47.933-06:00Mardi Gras '09Goodness gracious me. Where do I start? Perhaps the best place to start is to say, "Thank You Lord for your strength, mercy, protection, grace, discernment, love, peace, presence, and so much more over the past five days. Thank You for the countless opportunities to engage people, pray with them, tell them of Your love and, yes, care for their physical needs when the revelry left them Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19602638.post-10447148416231888632009-02-19T15:47:00.002-06:002009-02-19T16:02:02.789-06:00Off To a Great StartChurches across BAGNO have been turning in their commitments this week for Sharing the Peace of Jesus and more are expected to submit theirs over the next few days. So far 18 churches and two new church plants have joined together to lift up their communities in prayer and share with them the good news of Jesus Christ. At this point, over 50,000 households representing at least 125,000 people Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19602638.post-8105936397868606512009-02-16T09:09:00.006-06:002009-02-16T10:06:42.636-06:00Here's a look at the Mardi Gras outreach event that took place on Sunday, Feb. 15 at Lakeside Baptist Church in Metairie.This was the first time ever something like this has been done at a Jefferson Parish parade by one of our Southern Baptist Churches and it was awesome. I love the fact that God raised up one of our smallest churches, with and average Sunday morning attendance between 25-30, toUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19602638.post-73638277338149753112009-02-09T08:50:00.002-06:002009-02-09T09:01:44.365-06:00Praying For The LostThe first phase of Sharing the Peace of Jesus is getting underway. Churches throughout the Greater New Orleans area are considering where God is leading them to conduct their prayer walks. Maps are being poured over by pastors like generals before a strike. On our the master map in my office, significant portions of the city are being filled in as commitments are made. Some churches have Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19602638.post-44589308079133999742009-01-23T15:10:00.004-06:002009-01-26T08:30:19.564-06:00It's Just What We DoThe sun is setting and the temperature is dropping into the 50s with the wind blowing in from the north. Perfect time for a snowball. As I sat and savored every bite of my stuffed praline snowball, I wondered out loud, "Where else would this be normal?" There are a lot of things about living in the New Orleans area that produce that reaction. Most of them bring a smile to my face. The way weUnknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19602638.post-55742138309873816702009-01-12T11:29:00.003-06:002009-01-12T13:22:51.378-06:00Sharing the Peace of JesusIf there's a city in the United States that needs to experience true peace, it's New Orleans. Actually, they all do, but I live here and am therefore daily confronted with this need. From neighbors that live in anxiety due to illness to those that live in fear because of their street-thug lifestyle. From the angry driver on the interstate to the angry resident protesting on the steps of City Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19602638.post-26900020610551584472009-01-05T07:22:00.002-06:002009-01-12T11:29:24.464-06:002009 - A Year of New BeginningsWhile the rest of the world records the passing of years in B.C. and A.D., we in the New Orleans area have adopted our own designation for the advancement of time. Because August 29, 2005 marked such a dramatic turn in our history, all historical items area referred to in reference to this date. For example, we’re entering into the fourth Mardi Gras season after Katrina and we just had our Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19602638.post-59174556147047996672008-12-23T07:45:00.002-06:002008-12-23T08:57:24.707-06:00Merry ChristmasJaime and I want to wish you a very merry Christmas as we celebrate the advent of Jesus our Lord.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19602638.post-17279235757936487802008-12-15T08:27:00.003-06:002008-12-15T09:15:19.260-06:00Cold, Wet, White StuffWhen Jaime left for downtown early in the morning on Dec. 11, the air outside was cold, the clouds were thick over head and light showers were expected throughout the day. Boy, were they wrong! I would be at my home office working away for the next two hours while, unbeknownst to me, cold, wet, white stuff fell from the sky and quickly accumulated on the ground and anywhere it would stick. Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19602638.post-91425022199615560042008-11-24T08:19:00.004-06:002008-11-24T09:40:58.590-06:00The Focus of All ThanksI bet you're like me. This time of the year gets absolutely crazy and you feel like your going to lose your holiday mind. I tell myself every year that this go-around will be different. I'll get better control of my schedule and say no to a few bring a covered dish, can good, white elephant gift, and $10 to cover the rest family fun social holiday gatherings. I love a good party, but only in Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19602638.post-53226723760909841702008-11-17T08:06:00.002-06:002008-11-17T09:01:55.094-06:00Now The Real Work BeginsAfter three Restoration Fests, a Hispanic outreach service, and numerous evangelism teams in the streets, the work of the Holy Spirit during Crossover New Orleans resulted in 168 professions of faith. We praise God for each and every one of them. But before we wipe our collective brow in thanksgiving that Crossover is, well...over, let us remember that the weekend of November 8 & 9 was only the Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0