The 199th annual meeting of the South Carolina Baptist Convention Nov. 11-12 at the Church at The Mill (formerly Anderson Mill Road Baptist Church) in Moore will feature some unique, and possibly historic, moments.
Alex Sands, pastor of Kingdom Life Church in Simpsonville, will be nominated as president- elect. If elected, he will become the first African-American president in the history of the SCBC.
Brad Vassey, pastor of Hillcrest Baptist Church in York will be nominated for first vice president, and Seth Buckley, student minister at Spartanburg First Baptist Church, will be nominated as second vice president. As The Courier went to press, no other nominees had been announced.
This year’s convention president, Bryant Sims, has changed the times of the annual meeting and has invited four preachers to speak to the specific theme of each session. The convention will begin on Monday evening at 5:45, followed by three sessions on Tuesday. There will be no sessions on Wednesday, the time officers have typically been elected. This year, the election of officers will be at 9:45 on Tuesday morning. For a complete and detailed schedule of this year’s annual meeting, go to Baptistcourier.com.
The Pastors Conference will begin on Sunday, Nov. 10, at 6 p.m at Southside Baptist Church in Spartanburg, with two additional sessions on Monday morning and afternoon. Schuyler Peterson is the president of the Pastors Conference and pastor at Southside Church. This year’s theme is “Speak the Truth in Love.”
Sims stated that his Engage theme will focus on four specific areas: the culture, the lost, the nations, and the future. “We will disperse times of worship throughout the schedule,” Sims said, “and the music will be diverse.” Micah Fries, pastor of Brainerd Church in Chattanooga, Tenn., will speak on engaging the culture; Mike Glenn, pastor of Brentwood Church in Brentwood, Texas, will speak on engaging the lost; Edgar Aponte, Global Missions pastor at Idlewild Church in Lutz, Fla., will speak on engaging the nations; and H.B. Charles, pastor of Shiloh Metropolitan Church in Jacksonville, Fla., will speak on engaging the future.
The messengers will hear reports from the seven institution heads; two reports from Laurie Register, president of South Carolina WMU; and reports from leaders in the Baptist Building. They also will adopt resolutions and conduct several items of business.
The Executive Board report and budget presentation is set for 1:50 on Tuesday afternoon and will be led by SCBC Executive Director-Treasurer Gary Hollingsworth and Executive Board chair Zack Little.
Sims said he believes South Carolina Baptists do at least four important things at the annual meeting: worship, network, practice accountability, and conduct some business. Josh Powell, who is serving as president-elect, will become president at the conclusion of the annual meeting and announce his theme for the 2020 annual meeting.