For more information on the history of BSBC, please see our “About” page.

Join us from 9AM-3PM each day for some real-life horse rustling in the morning and Saddle Ridge VBS in the afternoon. Children aged 4-12 will learn horse-handling skills, social graces, and important spiritual truths designed to lead them to faith in Jesus Christ. Youth (aged 13-17) interested in participating may do so as Counselor Helpers.

Lunch will be provided, and there is no cost. All children will have to be registered prior to attending BSBC Summer Camp, and parents must fill out a release form before their children are allowed to ride. Call 985-290-7572 or email mike@bayspringsbaptist.org for info and/or registration.

VBS Registration and Permission Forms

How to find us.

Things kick off Friday night at 6:15PM and will pick back up at 9:15AM the following morning. After lunch in the Fellowship Hall, the conference will continue until 2:30PM.

How to find us.

Looking at our main page, you will find a drop-down set of links near the top of the page. To find out more about us, click the “About” link. There is also legal information and a map to our location under that heading. Under “Staff”, you will find a list of our ministerial staff along with (eventually) short biographies of each. You can also find posts from Bro. Mike (“A Word for Living”) and Bro. Scott (“Scott’s Thoughts”) there.

Under “Members” are links for church members who’ve signed up for a church email address and a calendar (which should be returning soon). There is also a link to church “Announcements”, including “Events” and past events. Finally, there’s a link to a page asking the most important question of all, “Do You Know Jesus?”, and some quickie information for “Visitors” to the church.

On the right-hand side of the home page, you can find a link to the BSBC Facebook group, feeds from Bro. Mike’s personal blog, news items from the Baptist Press (despite how it sounds, this is not a pro wrestling maneuver!), and some links of interest to us. At the very bottom you will find a short message from our pastor, schedule of worship, and contact information.

Jesus said, “If one loves Him, he will keep His commandments.” One’s doctrine, or theology, must be in harmony with God’s Word. In another place Jesus said, “Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?” The one who bases his relationship to God upon experience alone, is doctrinally unstable with shallow roots, so that when the experiences of life seem set against him, he is easily drawn away by the false teachings of the Evil One.

The Late Dr. Adrian Rogers often called these people, “Alka-Seltzer” people. They are people of fizz, warm and emotional, who respond easily to emotional appeals, but they are shallow, superficial, and rootless. They only want to be happy and will follow what ever seems to make them so, even if it is only temporary.

Churches are full of stony-hearted people. They simply do not understand the demands of the cross, nor do they desire to understand it. At the first sign of difficulty, they look for something else; something which will entertain them of make them feel good. They want an easy Christianity without trials.

Are you one of these? Are you like the rich young ruler who went away sorrowfully when he learned the real demands of the Gospel? Do you hunger and thirst to understand the basis of God’s great love for you, or are you one who simply bases your faith upon a series of experiences. If you are, I say to you this morning, “Repent! Ask God to take away your stony heart, and the Bible promises he will give you a heart of flesh.” A heart which will be able to learn and allow you to base your faith upon His Word.

This was not Communism where government pooled resources and doled them out equally to all, but rather a voluntary recognition that God had blessed them with everything they possessed and they were simply the caretakers. Brothers and sisters in Christ experienced the generosity of one another as genuine family. There was no recrimination for those who had need and no hesitancy on the part of those who had plenty.

A tangible result of that attitude of fellowship was that they had great power in witnessing and uncountable numbers were added to the church. That we have lost that is evident in the fact that we often sit in a worship service and know little of the affairs of those around us. We go to our homes, and watch football, or play games without involving ourselves in the lives of those with whom worship. Throughout the busy week little social interaction takes place outside a few close friends and family. How can one approach a virtual stranger and share his fears, joys, and concerns? Must the church remain an impassive body unresponsive to the genuine needs of brothers and sisters in Christ simply because we choose not to engage them on a personal and intimate level?

I believe church should have a reputation as a safe harbor where truth is presented in love by caring people genuinely interested in the general welfare. Rather, it is often represented as a cold body which rejects the imperfect. Strife, bickering, unforgiveness, and jealousy within the body give the lie to the message that Christ can meet one’s needs and lift his burdens, because what he sees in the church is no different than what he experiences at home and at work.

So the world asks, “Why do you claim that Christ is the answer? Your life is little different than ours, and we can sleep late on Sunday Mornings.”

The missing element, I believe, is genuine fellowship, and the only way we’re going to reverse the trend toward irrelevance in the local church is for those who claim Christ as Lord, to begin opening themselves in a vulnerable way to others so that the world might see genuine fellowship in us. Will you commit yourself to expanding your area of genuine concern by involving yourself with someone within the body who you don’t know much about? Invite them to your home for dinner, or coffee and cake. Choose this day to grow the fellowship within your local assembly so that the world will know you are different.

Joy to the World…It blares from digitally enhanced church steeples even as anxious shoppers within its sound trudge from store to store only to be confronted by short-tempered, ill-mannered, and inconsiderate shoppers and shop keepers.

Where is the “Joy” in Christmas? Everywhere one turns he hears, mumbling, grumbling, groaning, and complaining. The oft heard comment, “I just don’t have enough time,” reflects the consternation the Christmas Season brings.

I think it is time to take stock of what Christmas should be all about. It should be a time of willing self-sacrifice, not grudging dutiful drudgery. It should reflect the willing sacrifice Jesus Christ made when He left the glories of heaven to be born as a vulnerable human being during a time of poverty and political oppression, so that He could offer Himself a sacrifice for the sin of the world.

Should we approach the purchase of gifts as an opportunity to express our love and appreciation of those for whom the gifts are intended, we might be less frustrated in our search. Those people with whom we deal are simply obstacles placed there by the enemy to challenge our resolve to act in Christ-like love to those who serve us in our pursuits.

The driver who swerves into the parking place ahead of you, the shopper whose self-centered dash upends your load of packages, the clerk whose aching feet and splitting headache override her normally courteous behavior, and the myriad of others you encounter are simply opportunities to demonstrate that the Angels were not wrong. They did bring good tidings of great joy, and Issac Watts is correct, we can have joy.

Joy which is dependent upon perfect external conditions is not really joy at all. Joy is an expression of an internal condition which naturally flows from an ongoing and growing personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

JOY TO THE WORLD!!! THE LORD IS COME!!!

A great gift for any loved one is when you choose to put aside some habit or indulgence in order to make another’s life more full and meaningful. Several destructive habits and indulgences which steal one’s time and wreck relationships include, but are in no way limited to:

Alcohol
Tobacco
Computer Games
Pornography
Gossip

During the Christmas Season, that indulgence most often bring destruction is the use of alcohol a beverage. Misery will greet huge numbers of homes this season because of the destructive nature of alcohol and the hold it takes on men when they imbibe.

This season, purpose to give your loved ones the gift of a sober, rational, and whole person by choosing to stay away from the deadly brew.

Johnny Sanders Pastor of Providence Baptist Church in Downsville, La. Copied the following poem off the wall of Mississippi State Penitentiary at Parchman several years ago. The author is unknown to this writer.

THE BAR
The name of each saloon is bar,
The fittest of its names by far.
A bar to Heaven, a door to hell;
Whoever named it, named it well.
A bar to manliness and wealth,
A door to want and broken health.
A bar to honor, pride, and fame,
A door to grief, sin, and shame.
A bar to hopes, a bar to prayers,
A door to darkness and despair.
A bar to honored, useful life,
A door to brawling, senseless strife.
A bar to all that’s true and brave,
A door to every drunkard’s grave.
A bar to joy that home imparts,
A door to tears and aching hearts.
A bar to Heaven, a door to hell,
Whoever named it named it well.

Christmas is a time of severe stress for many families. There never seems to be enough money, and the demand on ones time during this season is enormous. The tendency to become irritable and short-tempered is a warning that stress is becoming a problem on ones life. How does one deal effectively with stress so that it does not adversely affect relationships and turn a time of joy into a time of drudgery and frustration?

I believe the greatest stress buster available is to remember that you are not your own. If you are a genuine Believer, you have been purchased with the precious blood of Jesus Christ and if God loves you enough to pay such a price for you, then surely He loves you enough to provide the where withal to enjoy that life He has given you. I believe the “all things” He freely gives us is the abundant and fruitful life. He says in another place, “I am come that you might have life, and that more abundantly.”

Remember this: God is only bringing that into your life which will more effectively mold you and make you into His image. Don’t kick against the goads. Realize He will take your load if you will trust Him enough to give it to Him.

During this Christmas season, we would be better served by trying to discover what He would have us do, rather than trying to please everyone else. He will never lead you and me to dig ourselves into a financial hole. We must learn to appreciate what He gives instead of wishing we had something else, or lived somewhere else, or were able to buy more expensive gifts. We can be sure that He has provided what we need to carry out what He wants us to do.

We must also eliminate those activities which He does not lead us to participate in. Never is there more need for a “Don’t Do” list than during the Christmas Season. The stress of trying to juggle church, family, work, school, and community events is far too great if we are planning our own schedule. We must spend time in earnest prayer seeking to know His schedule for our lives, then act accordingly. He will provide us with the time, energy, and enthusiasm necessary to keep His schedule. If we continue to operate according to our own schedule, then we can expect frustration, tiredness, anger, and fear.

“Come unto Me all you who labor and are burdened down I will give you rest.” That is His promise. He cannot lie. Let us learn to rest in Him during this, the most tumultuous and stressful time of the year. Let us allow Him to turn the stress into joy because of what it means in our lives.