by David Roach
BALTIMORE (BP) — Through hearing a diverse array of speakers — both in terms of race and age — Southern Baptist Pastors’ Conference President Bruce Frank hopes pastors will attain a clearer vision of God’s glory. Hence the theme of this year’s gathering: “Show Us Your Glory!”
“You don’t want to miss any of it,” Frank, pastor of Biltmore Baptist Church in Asheville, N.C., said. “By going and getting coffee or skipping a speaker, you very well could miss exactly what God wants to say to you right then.”
The June 8-9 Pastors’ Conference will feature preaching, worship and prayer to undergird the ministry of pastors and their wives. The sessions at the Baltimore Convention Center will be held prior to the Southern Baptist Convention’s June 10-11 annual meeting there.
“What I did as I thought about the speakers and the theme was to have guys that have a heart to pour into pastors,” Frank said.
Speakers for Sunday evening (June 8) at the Pastors’ Conference will include Johnny Hunt, pastor of First Baptist Church in Woodstock, Ga.; H.B. Charles, pastor of Shiloh Metropolitan Baptist Church in Jacksonville, Fla.; and David Platt, pastor of The Church at Brook Hills in Birmingham, Ala.
Monday morning (June 9) will feature messages from Ronnie Floyd, pastor of Cross Church in Northwest Arkansas; Clayton King, evangelist and founder of Crossroads Worldwide in Shelby, N.C.; and Eric Mason, pastor of Epiphany Fellowship in Philadelphia.
Monday afternoon speakers will include J.D. Greear, pastor of The Summit Church in Durham, N.C.; and Tony Evans, pastor of Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship in Dallas.
Monday evening speakers will include Rick Warren, pastor of Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif.; James MacDonald, pastor of Harvest Bible Chapel in Rolling Meadows, Ill.; and Francis Chan, founder of Eternity Bible College in Simi Valley, Calif.
Worship will be led by Christian recording artist Matt Redman, Harvest Bible Chapel’s Vertical Church Band and Biltmore Baptist Church’s Biltmore Worship.
The Pastors’ Conference offering will go to Mission:Dignity, a program administered by GuideStone Financial Resources that provides financial assistance to retired pastors, Christian workers and their widows who are struggling to make ends meet. In addition to an offering, attendees are asked to bring blankets to be donated to the homeless in Baltimore through a local ministry.
This year’s leadership team, which includes Clint Pressley, pastor of Hickory Grove Baptist Church in Charlotte, N.C., as vice president and Alex Himaya, pastor of theCHURCH.at in Tulsa, Okla., as treasurer, hopes the conference will refresh pastors and their families.
“The design of this conference is simply for men and women who oftentimes are just giving, giving, giving — pouring out. Ministry can be kind of lonely. Ministry can be exhausting,” Frank said. “The design is that there would be a worship experience that would refresh and renew the men and women who are going to be there.”
The Pastors’ Conference is free and requires no registration. To learn more about this year’s schedule, sponsors and theme, visit sbcpc.net. For a schedule, click here.
Child care for children ages birth through 12 years will be offered during all Pastors’ Conference sessions. Children ages 4-12 may register for a conference provided by Children’s Conferences International. Register at www.childrensconferences.com.
Southern Baptist Disaster Relief childcare volunteers will offer childcare for newborns through age 5 during the Pastors’ Conference.
David Roach is Baptist Press’ chief national correspondent.
