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AUGUSTA, Ga. (BP) — As Leslie Montgomery finished college, her dad asked if she was ready to go to Africa as a missionary. He had heard her speak of that desire often growing up. Her reply was one of frustration.

“No, I was ready for that nine years ago. Not anymore,” she said. She’d felt the call of God to missions at 12 years old. Yet, it seemed God wasn’t opening those doors for her life. In her view, there were too many “messy years in the middle,” she says. She had given up on her dreams of missions.

Still, for Leslie, Africa had always been deeply imprinted on her heart. She changed her mind about the short-term mission trip her dad proposed, and she went. That experience marked a defining season for her. There was a “before Africa” and there was an “after Africa” for her.

Similarly, her husband, Luke, knew God was calling him to missions. But when a short-term trip opportunity presented itself, he said no. While his childhood call was to missions, he still preferred the idea of life in the United States to cross-cultural missions.

Life happened for Luke and Leslie – marriage, a pandemic and a baby. God’s calling on their lives hadn’t changed, though. The couple knew God was telling them it was time to go. They sold their house, quit their jobs and followed His call.

The Montgomerys were two of 24 International Mission Board missionaries who participated in the Sending Celebration on Nov. 13 at Warren Baptist Church in Augusta, Ga. The event was hosted by the Georgia Baptist Convention in conjunction with its annual meeting, as it celebrated its 200^th anniversary. Twenty-six missionaries were approved unanimously for appointment in a virtual meeting of IMB’s board of trustees held Nov. 8.

Next March, the Montgomerys, along with their 2-year-old son, Brock, are headed to South Africa to disciple university students. They are being sent from Harvey Baptist Church in Texas.

Power of partnership

As IMB President Paul Chitwood began his time addressing those in attendance, he brought thanks to Georgia Baptists for their cooperative work in solving the world’s greatest problem.

“It is such a privilege to be in partnership with you,” Chitwood told Georgia Baptists. “Thank you for continuing to work together.”

Chitwood reminded attendees why this partnership and the sending of these missionaries is so important. Partnership is crucial, because the world’s greatest problem is lostness. Lostness is eternal, and lostness is universal. The Bible teaches that, and clearly so, in Revelation 20.

“This chapter helps us understand that lostness is the only problem with eternal consequences,” Chitwood said. “Every problem in your life that you experience ends when you die but one. The true magnitude of that problem will only be realized the moment you die.”

Through Jesus, though, God solved this age-old problem of lostness.

“Your church exists to address the world’s greatest problem. Georgia Baptists, you’re here to address the world’s greatest problem. We’re here to address the world’s greatest problem,” he said.

And while there are so many who have never heard the solution, “we’re here because we know the solution, and we’re here to share it,” Chitwood added.

Georgia Baptist Executive Director Thomas Hammond asked Chitwood to take a message to IMB missionaries.

“Tell them we will walk beside them through this, and we will sacrifice as they have sacrificed to ensure they have all they need as they go and take the Gospel to the nations,” Hammond said.

“We have an army of people who desire to do not just evangelism in Georgia, but around the world.”

Each IMB missionary is funded through the Cooperative Program and the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering (LMCO). The missionaries sent out Nov. 13 represent the IMB’s purpose to provide steadfast missionary presence that leads to Gospel access among those who have never heard.

The Cooperative Program, in addition to funding overseas work of Southern Baptist missionaries, funds the support services in the U.S. for those missions. Each dollar of the LMCO, with the 2021-2022 offering exceeding $200 million, goes overseas to bring the Gospel to the least reached.

Sending the senders

Caleb and Trish Spacht were the senders. They’d supported a teenager, Rebecca Joy, from their youth group who was called as an adult to the mission field. They were comfortable serving on a church staff, calling out the called and sending the sent.

Until they weren’t.

“Our call didn’t come in a thunderous, ‘this is it’ moment,” Trish said. “It was a collection of tiny moments, God whispering and weaving through our lives this thread of international missions.”

The couple felt God calling them to something different, Trish said. She describes feeling a “holy discontent” with the level of comfort they were experiencing in their lives.

In obedience, they started conversations with different churches, wondering if God was calling them to leave their current ministry position at a church they’d served for 16 years. Caleb thought maybe God was calling them to be church planters in the United States. Still, they sensed God’s will in none of those options.

Then, God broke their hearts for the people of Europe. With the cultural Catholicism, agnosticism and postmodernism that characterize the region, they knew the people in the picturesque European cityscapes were essentially unreached with the Gospel.

The Lord made it clear to them that He wasn’t calling them to plant a church across the city, but He was calling them to plant a church across the world.

The Spachts, along with their two daughters, Reagan (6) and Camryn (2.5), are headed to Paris to join a church-planting team to impact the postmodern culture with the truth of the Gospel. They are being sent from Happy Valley Baptist Church in Arizona.

The next IMB Sending Celebration will be Feb. 1, 2023, near Richmond, Va.

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WJBF) – Erick Montgomery of Historic Augusta, Inc. just received the Mary Gregory Jewett Award from the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation at its 44th annual Preservation Award ceremony.The award is the trust’s top honor for an individual.

“Well I’m very honored. Preservation has been my career since I graduated from college and I’ve been in Georgia ever since. I’ve been here in Augusta for 32 years, but I was in other places before that. So, I’m gratified, humbled and honored,” said Montgomery.

In his time at Historic Augusta, Montgomery has grown it into one of the largest non-profit historic preservation organizations in Georgia. Having been here 32 years, there’s lots of projects Montgomery has been involved in and his work speaks for itself.

“Well, one is the building we’re standing in here; the Joseph Lamar Boyhood Home, which is our headquarters. We acquired this in 1995 and got it rehabbed and moved into it in 2004. Next door is Woodrow Wilson’s boyhood home, which was another major project. We acquired that in ’91 and had it opened as a museum in 2001. So, these are major things. More recently, I think the Augusta Jewish Museum project is quite a victory for Historic Augusta and the Augusta community,” said Montgomery.

Montgomery has no plans of slowing down.

“A community knows itself by it’s history. If they don’t know their history, they don’t have a real self-awareness of themselves as a community. Historic preservation is all about that. It keeps the focus on on the history through the buildings, through the built environment that we all enjoy and recognize,” said Montgomery.

So you pretty much got the lifetime achievement award for what it is that you do. What’s next?

“Just keep on keeping on. We’ve got about 25 or so projects that we are helping with now; different rehabs in our town, mostly downtown. We’re just keeping those alive, advising people on what they can do and how to go about it,” said Montgomery.

AUBURN — Auburn gymnastics coach Jeff Graba gave a few of his stars some rest in a meet against Missouri on Sunday. Most notably, Suni Lee and Cassie Stevens weren't participants in the all-around.

Back in full force five days later against Georgia on Friday, Lee got things started with a bang. She matched her career-high mark on vault in the first rotation with a 9.95, helping Auburn jump out to an early .425 lead. The Tigers maintained their advantage throughout, topping the Bulldogs, 197.55-196.075, in Neville Arena.

Lee, the 2020 Olympic all-around champion, added a 9.95 on bars, a 9.85 on beam and a 9.725 on floor to win the all-around title with a 39.475. One judge awarded her with a 10 for her performance on bars, but the other deducted a tenth of a point, which the Auburn faithful wasn't too pleased with.

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PREVIOUS MEET:Suni Lee doesn't participate in the all-around, Auburn gymnastics scores season-low 196.55

"(We) came in trying to focus on us a little bit more," Graba said. "Try to get in our bubble. And even though this environment is fantastic and you don't actually have to motivate too much, we have been prone to getting distracted at times. I thought they did a better job tonight, so that was good to see.

"And we put some people into positions where we think we might be using them in the postseason. Most of that was pretty successful, so pretty happy night."

Derrian Gobourne matched Lee's 9.95 on bars and registered a 9.9 on vault before finishing the meet with a 9.95 on floor. On beam, it was Gabby McLaughlin leading the way with a 9.9.

Auburn's overall score of 197.55 is its third best of the season. It replaces the 197.175 the Tigers notched against North Carolina State on Jan. 27 in the calculation of their National Qualifying Score. Auburn's NQS is now 197.46.

"We're ready for the postseason. I think we're ready. ... (The team's) mindset right now is − I feel like they think they can handle anything," Graba said. "I've just got to back them down. Everybody is trying to go 150 miles an hour right now. We'll go to Kentucky next week and have another record crowd and they'll want to beat us and if they beat us it'll be on the front page.

"That's just the way it is. I love it. No better way to prepare for the postseason than this way."

Up next

The Tigers go on the road to take on Kentucky on Friday (6 p.m. CT). After that, they'll wrap up the regular season with a meet against Penn State at home on March 10.

Richard Silva is the Auburn athletics beat writer for the Montgomery Advertiser. He can be reached via email at rsilva@gannett.com or on Twitter @rich_silva18.

Story by: John Zenor – The Associated Press

Photos by: Ed Pugh – LaGrange Daily News

MONTGOMERY (AP) — Buffalo built a lead with Cole Snyder’s passing and Alex McNulty’s kicking. The Bulls put the Camellia Bowl away with an unrelenting barrage of fourth-quarter runs by Tajay Ahmed for a 23-21 victory over Georgia Southern on Tuesday. Snyder passed for 265 yards and Ahmed took over the final quarter with 14 carries. “This was kind of a small episode of kind of who we’ve been and what our season looked like,” Buffalo coach Maurice Linguist said. “Just tough yards, grind out play after play. And kind of throw a blanket over the scoreboard and just pound the rock, is what we say.” The Bulls (7-6) chewed up the clock with runs from Ahmed on 11 consecutive plays and one pile-pushing final first down. The former walk-on, who was awarded a scholarship in the spring, finished with 27 carries for 98 yards and a touchdown. That last first down meant quarterback Kyle Vantrease and Georgia Southern (6-7) couldn’t get the ball back for a final chance against Vantrease’s former team, with whom he spent five years and started 26 games before transferring. “I’ve always believed great quarterbacks provide hope and every game we walked into he provides hope,” first-year Eagles coach Clay Helton said. “If we got that ball back one more time, you just knew that that hope was there.” Snyder, a Rutgers transfer, completed 21 of 38 passes, including a 32-yard touchdown to game MVP Justin Marshall to outduel his predecessor. Quian Williams gained 100 yards on five catches, and Marshall caught 11 passes for 127 yards in what the graduate transfer from Louisville called his best college game. The last catch was Marshall’s biggest, and a replay upheld the on-field call that Marshall’s right foot stayed in bounds. “We all were talking amongst the offense,” he said. “We looked at it one time and I saw it and said that’s definitely a catch. They’re wasting time reviewing it.” Vantrease completed 28 of 45 passes for 352 yards and two touchdowns with an interception. Beau Johnson had five catches for 118 yards. It was Buffalo’s third straight bowl win after going 0-3 in bowls. And the victory came after an 0-3 start this season. “They wrote us off. They questioned,” Linguist said. “They weren’t sure if we were going to finish, and then here we are at the end. We got a ring. We’re (bowl) champions.” Buffalo had a cushion thanks to Dylan Powell’s interception and return across midfield in the fourth quarter. Ahmed then carried nine straight times but was stopped on three runs starting from the 2. The Bulls had to settle for a 23-14 lead with McNulty’s third field goal of the second half with 8:38 left. That FG was a school record, No. 49 of his career. Vantrease and Georgia Southern stayed alive with a 13-play, 90-yard drive. On fourth-and-7 from his own territory, Vantrease hit Johnson for a 42-yard gain. Then Jjay McAfee made a grab in the end zone for a 13-yard touchdown with 3:38 left. Georgia Southern needed only 26 seconds in the second half to wipe out a 14-6 deficit, thanks to a fumble, Vantrease’s 79-yard touchdown pass to Joshua Thompson and a two-point conversion. “It has been a wonderful ride this season, and I can’t thank our seniors enough for the foundation that they’ve led and laid for this team,” Helton said. “In my opinion, the best is yet to be. Sometimes you fight your guts out and it just doesn’t go your way at the end, and that’s what this team did.”

Auburn football is hitting the road for the first time this season to face the Georgia Bulldogs on Saturday.

The Tigers (3-2, 1-1 SEC) played five straight games at Jordan-Hare Stadium, losing two including last week against LSU.

Georgia (5-0, 2-0) is undefeated, taking down Missouri last week.

Here's how to watch the game:

How to watch Auburn football vs. Georgia on TV, live stream, plus game time

Time/date: 2:30 p.m. on Saturday, October 8

Location: Sanford Stadium, Athens, Ga.

TV: CBS

Live stream: CBS Sports

Online radio broadcast: Auburn Tigers Radio

Read more Auburn football news:

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EKU LEOTA INJURY:Bryan Harsin says Auburn football edge rusher Eku Leota likely out for season

MIDSEASON FIRINGS:Auburn football coach Bryan Harsin on recent midseason firings: 'Every program is different'

BRYAN HARSIN'S FUTURE:Bryan Harsin increasingly grilled on future with Auburn football: What happens after LSU loss?

LOSS TO LSU:Auburn football blows 17-point lead in self-destructive loss to LSU

Bryan Harsin is the head coach for Auburn football. Kirby Smart is the head coach for Georgia football.

Trisha Easto is a digital producer for the USA Today Network. You can find her on Twitter @trishaanicole