Danny BurnleyNov. 12, 2007. The South Carolina Baptist Pastor’s Conference at Calvary Baptist Church in Florence! This day will soon be here, and I trust that every pastor is making plans to be present for this exciting time in our convention.
In my last article, I shared with you that we will begin our conference with 26-year-old evangelist Braxton Hunter, followed by 81-year-old evangelist Aubert Rose.
Following our lunch break, Elliott Osowitt, who is Jewish and also a Baptist pastor, will be sharing with us a most exciting and challenging testimony. The Gideons will be recognized as our special guests after Osowitt’s sermon.
Today, I want to introduce the next four preachers:
Our second preacher for the afternoon session will be Harold Hunter. He pastored churches in Tennessee from 1962 until 1981 when he accepted the call to the 2,600-member North Jacksonville Baptist Church, where he served until 1991. During his pastorate, the church grew to a membership of 5,000 members. Each of the five churches he served as pastor were listed in the top 1 percent of the fastest-growing churches in America during his tenure with them. In 1991, Hunter resigned the pastorate to enter full-time evangelism and founded Trinity Crusades for Christ. Since that time, he has served as the evangelist for more than 500 local church and area crusades recording more than 50,000 public decisions for Christ. In November 2005, he became president of Trinity College of the Bible and Theological Seminary, one of the world’s largest biblical institutions, with more than 8,000 students worldwide. He is also author of six books.
Bobby Welch
Sam Cathey
Richard Lee
Harold Hunter
Elliott OsowittI have personally known Harold Hunter since 1983. It has been through his ministry, preaching and godly counsel that I have learned great truths concerning “balance” in the ministry. He has faced death on several occasions because of a serious physical problem he has had for many years. Because of his wisdom, anointing and near-death experiences, I have asked him to address the subject, “The Pastor’s Problems.”
Richard Lee, the founding pastor of First Redeemer Church located in metropolitan Atlanta, will be our next preacher. He is a frequent speaker in conferences and conventions, nationally and internationally. “There’s Hope America,” the television broadcast for which Lee serves as speaker, reaches into every state in the United States and numerous foreign countries.
Some years ago while I was pastoring in Saluda Baptist Association, Lee was invited to preach at one of our associational meetings. It was there where I heard his message, “Equipping the Saints.” From this sermon, God enabled me to be a better pastor and to do a much better job in making disciples. Lee will help each of us to become better pastors as he addresses the subject, “The Pastor’s Program.”
As we begin our evening session, Sam Cathey will be preaching. It was at the age of 10 when he was converted, and he was called to preach at the age of 16. He has been a very successful pastor and evangelist as he has preached across the nation in revivals, Bible conferences and evangelistic meetings.
It was back in the early 1980s when I heard Sam Cathey preach a particular sermon that literally transformed my ministry. Since that one sermon, my ministry has been filled with excitement. When I contacted him about this conference, I asked that he preach this sermon. If you truly want God to bless your ministry, don’t miss this sermon! I personally believe one of the reasons God has opened this door for me to serve as your president is the result of God’s message through Sam Cathey years ago. He will be dealing with the subject, “The Pastor’s Power.”
Our final sermon will be preached by Bobby Welch. We all know Bobby Welch as the president of the Southern Baptist Convention, 2005-2006 and as pastor of First Baptist Church of Daytona Beach (1974-2006). As the co-founder/originator of Faith Through The Sunday School Strategy, Southern Baptists have witnessed the influence of his ministry.
Each of these men has been invited to preach at this year’s Pastor’s Conference because their ministries have touched my life. These men are anointed of God, and they will minister to you as well. I personally believe that Bobby Welch is the preacher to close out this year’s conference as he addresses the subject, “The Pastor’s Perspective.”