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BRENTWOOD -- Tennessee Southern Baptists are starting a new Web page aimed at offering spiritual and practical advice to individuals, churches and others suffering from the economic downturn.

The online feature at www.tnbaptist.org titled "Hope in Unsettled Times Your Crisis We Care" is set to launch next week, said Tennessee Baptist Convention executive director James Porch, who is helping create the Web page along with TBC staff members.

Porch said members of the convention, which includes 3,213 churches and missions, have been hurt by the economic recession.

"This (economic downturn) must be seen as a season, and seasons come, seasons go," Porch said. "If people look at it that way, they understand we're not locked in here. It creates hope."

The new page will feature Scripture centered around themes of hope, faith and compassion to help people cope with the crisis and numerous articles, including some offering advice on creating a budget -- all free of charge. The Web page is also interactive with blogs to encourage dialogue, Porch said.

Churches across Tennessee are feeling the effects of the economy, with donations down as people lose their jobs and income.

Porch said the convention anticipates that by at the end of its fiscal year on Oct. 31, it will see $3.5 to $4 million less in cooperative program gifts -- donations from churches to convention ministries -- unless the economy begins to rebound.

Porch said he has received notes and letters with offerings from churches apologizing for their decreased donations.

"In earlier times, with a change in the economy, the trickle-down effect would take up to a year to hit us. It's hitting much sooner now," Porch said.

"Most of our churches are small and rural. Over 2,200 have less than 100 people who attend on Sunday. The size of those church dictates some of the troubles they have. They're being affected by this. But they're saying to us in these notes and cards that, 'We're here and we plan to be here."'

Mike Waddey, pastor of Cottage Grove Baptist Church near Paris, said the small church averages around $2,900 a week in donations. Giving has remained stable even though some church members and others in the community are hurting from job losses.

He said the church, with a Sunday attendance of about 100, has seen an increase in people asking for help paying for utilities and food. He thinks the Tennessee Baptists' new Web page should be of great help and inspiration.

"I've observed a resiliency in our people," Waddey said. "They'll go to great lengths to find work. But it's very sad to watch what people have to go through to find work.

"The message we've been clinging to really is that it rains on the just and unjust," Waddey said. "This is just a period in time. Hopefully it won't be long. We tell folks to continue to have faith in the Lord and continue to help each other."