{"id":46148,"date":"2024-01-04T08:00:14","date_gmt":"2024-01-04T13:00:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/floridabaptist.wpengine.com\/?p=46148"},"modified":"2025-11-04T16:19:11","modified_gmt":"2025-11-04T21:19:11","slug":"florida-baptists-most-read-stories-of-2023","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/flbaptist.org\/florida-baptists-most-read-stories-of-2023\/","title":{"rendered":"Florida Baptists\u2019 Most-Read Stories of 2023"},"content":{"rendered":"

Pictured above: Pastor Marcos Andrade embraces the youngest member of the Lucie family. The Lucies lived 10 years in Brazil where they learned to speak Portuguese.<\/em><\/p>\n

How is God moving through the Sunshine State? Here\u2019s your answer. Planting and revitalizing churches, reaching unreached people groups, baptizing new believers, ministering and witnessing during times of crisis\u2013these are just a few of the Florida Baptist Convention\u2019s 20 most-read stories in 2023.<\/p>\n

1. Pastor Brings Churches Together to Revitalize First Baptist Fort Lauderdale<\/a><\/h4>\n
By David Moore, Oct. 13.\u00a0<\/em><\/h5>\n

FORT LAUDERDALE\u2013Pastor David Hughes helped turn things around for what is now Church by the Glades<\/a> decades ago, and now he and members of that church are working together to help revitalize First Baptist Fort Lauderdale<\/a>.<\/p>\n

2. Brazilian Church Plant in Delray Beach Reaches Haitians with Gospel<\/a><\/h4>\n
By Keila Diaz, June 2.<\/em><\/h5>\n

DELRAY BEACH\u2014 One-year-old church plant\u00a0Brazilian Baptist Church<\/a>\u00a0is reaching not only Brazilians in the Delray Beach community, but also Portuguese-speaking\u00a0Haitian\u00a0families.<\/p>\n

3. Baptist College of Florida Partners with Local Church to Launch Extension Campus<\/a><\/h4>\n
By Jessica Pigg, Aug. 9.\u00a0<\/em><\/h5>\n

CLEARWATER\u2013\u00a0The Baptist College of Florida\u00a0<\/a>recently has announced a partnership with\u00a0Calvary Church<\/a>\u00a0in Clearwater to launch a new extension campus slated to open in August 2024.<\/p>\n

\"woman<\/a>
First Baptist Church Naples baptizes record number of men, women and children.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

4. Southwest Florida Church Witnesses Unprecedented Number of Baptisms\/Life Change<\/a><\/h4>\n
By Jessica Pigg, May 18.<\/em><\/h5>\n

NAPLES\u2014April found herself searching for purpose and struggling to find direction. She had grown up attending church with her family, so she did an online search for Baptist churches near her and found First Naples<\/a>. On January 23, after years of searching for purpose, April found life change.<\/p>\n

5. Pastors to Be Nominated to Lead 2024 Florida Baptist Pastors\u2019 Conference<\/a><\/h4>\n
By Margaret Colson, Oct. 2.<\/em><\/h5>\n

LUTZ\u00ad\u2013Aaron Burgner will be nominated by fellow Florida Baptist pastor Alan Brumback to serve as president of the 2024 Florida Baptist Pastors\u2019 Conference.<\/p>\n

6. Church Replant Breathes New Life into Historic Community\/Unites Local Churches<\/a><\/h4>\n
By Brooke Mannion, March 8.<\/em><\/h5>\n

PENSACOLA\u00ad\u2013A new God story is unfolding in West Pensacola\u2019s rich historic religious landscape.\u00a0The Point Church Jackson Campus, a replant of West Pensacola Baptist Church, is breathing new life into the historic 12-acre campus, which had been \u201ca foothold for the\u00a0gospel\u201d in the community for more than half a century.<\/p>\n

7. Florida Baptists to Celebrate\/Conduct Business at 2023 Annual Meeting<\/a><\/h4>\n
By Margaret Colson, Oct. 30.<\/em><\/h5>\n

LUTZ\u2013Florida Baptists will gather to conduct business and celebrate churches working together to expand God\u2019s kingdom when the 2023\u00a0Florida Baptist State Convention<\/a> convenes at\u00a0Idlewild Baptist Church\u00a0in Lutz Nov. 13-14.<\/p>\n

8. Horseshoe Beach Church Serves ss \u2018Lighthouse\u2019 for Community Amid Hurricane Devastation<\/a><\/h4>\n
By Jessica Pigg, Sept. 5.<\/em><\/h5>\n

HORSESHOE BEACH\u2014Known as a laid-back, friendly fishing village, the quaint community of Horseshoe Beach found itself directly in the path of Hurricane Idalia\u2019s 125 mph winds and 10-foot storm surge. The catastrophic devastation has left the fishing and boating community in pieces.<\/p>\n

Picking up some of those pieces is Robin Hoffman. Hoffman\u2019s family has owned a home in Horseshoe Beach since the early 1970s and is a longtime member of\u00a0First Baptist Church\u00a0Horseshoe Beach\u2014the only local church within 20 miles.<\/p>\n

9. \u2018Incredibly Gracious and Big God\u2019 Fuels Partnerships Between Churches\/Regions<\/a><\/h4>\n
By Jessica Pigg, June 28.<\/em><\/h5>\n

FT. LAUDERDALE\u2013The long, scenic miles across Alligator Alley could not hinder southwest Florida Baptist pastors from coming \u201cright beside\u201d Larry Brister, a pastor serving in Ft. Lauderdale.<\/p>\n

10. Calvary Church Reaches Deaf Community for Christ<\/a><\/h4>\n
By Jessica Pigg, July 18.<\/em><\/h5>\n

CLEARWATER\u2014For Ron Cooney, a specific church ministry originally brought his family through the doors of\u00a0Calvary Church<\/a>\u00a0when he was 14 years old. As a child of a deaf adult (CODA), Cooney and his family were able to find a home at the\u00a0Central Florida\u00a0church. Now, years later, Cooney still calls Calvary Church home\u2014as its executive pastor.<\/p>\n

11. \u2018God Has Showed Up and Showed Out\u2019 for Worship\/Youth Pastor<\/a><\/h4>\n
By Brooke Mannion, Oct. 15.<\/em><\/h5>\n

CRAWFORDVILLE\u2013An excruciating cry of pain rang out through the worship center as Pastor Wayne Baker presented the altar call at\u00a0First Baptist Church\u00a0of Wakulla Station<\/a> on Sunday, April 23. Baker quickly realized that Pastor Daniel Lloyd, worship and youth pastor, had fallen to the ground in debilitating back pain.<\/p>\n

12. \u2018I\u2019ve Always Had a Love for Pastors\u2019 Says Retiring Catalyst Gary Townsend<\/a><\/h4>\n
By David Moore, July 16.<\/em><\/h5>\n

Helping pastors and their churches was one of the things Gary Townsend enjoyed most about his role as north regional catalyst for the\u00a0Florida Baptist Convention.<\/p>\n

13. Monticello Church Marks 192nd Anniversary with Heritage Day Celebration<\/a><\/h4>\n
By David Moore, July 6.<\/em><\/h5>\n

MONTICELLO\u00ad\u2013When\u00a0Elizabeth Baptist Church\u00a0in Monticello held its heritage day celebration recently, members and guests gathered to commemorate 192 years of history in various ways, which included:<\/p>\n

Dedicating its new bronze plaque containing a handwritten replica of the church\u2019s original constitution, now attached to the front of the church.
\nHonoring its historian and a couple of longtime, dedicated members.
\nThanking its members for its status as one of the most generous Baptist churches in Florida.
\nRejoicing in the baptism of a new believer.<\/p>\n

14. UF Students Spend Spring Break on Mission in South Sudan<\/a><\/h4>\n
By David Moore, May 11.<\/em><\/h5>\n

GAINESVILLE\u2013South Sudan in East Africa is not your typical spring break destination for today\u2019s college students, but when the opportunity arose to go there on a mission trip, Emma Formet was all in.<\/p>\n

15. Diverse Populations Unified in Christ at Crestview Baptist Church<\/a><\/h4>\n
By Teodosia Rivera, Oct. 10.<\/em><\/h5>\n

LAKELAND\u00ad\u2013As David Renfroe celebrates his 20th\u00a0anniversary as senior pastor of Crestview Baptist Church<\/a>\u00a0in Lakeland, the true celebration focuses on the more than 1,500 individuals\u00ad\u2013representing dramatically diverse walks of life\u00ad\u2013who have made professions of faith and been baptized over the past two decades at the\u00a0Central Florida\u00a0church.<\/p>\n

16. Florida Baptists Come Together to Celebrate Victories, Look to Future During Challenge 2025 Gathering<\/a><\/h4>\n
By Margaret Colson and Keila Diaz, March 3.<\/em><\/h5>\n

ORLANDO\u00ad\u2013Close to 1,000 Florida Baptists came together to celebrate victories and look to the future in reaching Florida\u2019s 22 million residents with the\u00a0gospel\u00a0during the Challenge 2025 Gathering held Feb. 28 at\u00a0First Baptist Church in Orlando.<\/a><\/p>\n

17. Cloer Inaugurated as Seventh President of Baptist College of Florida<\/a><\/h4>\n
By Margaret Colson, April 26.<\/em><\/h5>\n

GRACEVILLE\u2013The Baptist College of Florida<\/a>\u00a0inaugurated Clayton Cloer as it seventh president in a ceremony April 25 on the school\u2019s main campus in Graceville.<\/p>\n

18. Culbreth Retires, Credits God with Ministry Opportunities\/Impact<\/a><\/h4>\n
By Margaret Colson, March 24.<\/em><\/h5>\n

JACKSONVILLE\u2013After serving the\u00a0Florida Baptist Convention, where he has \u201cinvested his life in the church,\u201d for 25 years, Craig Culbreth, is retiring March 31, 2023.<\/p>\n

19. Cooking up a Community that Glorifies God<\/a><\/h4>\n
By Brooke Mannion, June 1.<\/em><\/h5>\n

PENSACOLA\u00ad\u2013Working late nights and serving the Sunday brunch crowd, restaurant workers can find it difficult to draw near to God, consistently fellowship with believers and receive encouragement to walk with Christ.<\/p>\n

20. Chipola Churches Share Christ, Give Generously and Celebrate Milestone<\/a><\/h4>\n
By Brooke Mannion, Sept. 21.<\/em><\/h5>\n

MARIANNA\u2013Smiles, singing, crafts, praising Jesus and learning about His love and sacrifice fueled the summer for churches in\u00a0Chipola Baptist Association<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Planting and revitalizing churches, reaching unreached people groups, baptizing new believers, ministering and witnessing during times of crisis\u2013these are just a few of the Florida Baptist Convention\u2019s 20 most-read stories in 2023.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":108,"featured_media":50307,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"ep_exclude_from_search":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[174,188,46,161,40,140,10,11,12,583,17,18,19,155,20,22,23,45,25,213],"tags":[582,584],"class_list":["post-46148","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-asian","category-baptist-college-of-florida","category-black","category-church-community","category-developing","category-disaster-relief-missions","category-espanol","category-expanding","category-haitian","category-migrant","category-missions","category-multicultural","category-news","category-next-generation","category-partnership","category-providing","category-sharing","category-statewide","category-stories","category-women","tag-2023-recap","tag-most-read-stories"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/flbaptist.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46148","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/flbaptist.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/flbaptist.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flbaptist.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/108"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flbaptist.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=46148"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/flbaptist.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46148\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":67708,"href":"https:\/\/flbaptist.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46148\/revisions\/67708"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flbaptist.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/50307"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/flbaptist.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=46148"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flbaptist.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=46148"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flbaptist.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=46148"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}