BGCM ‘pitchman’ still making calls on MBC churches
By Bob Baysinger
Managing Editor
October 21, 2003
BOONVILLE – The Baptist General Convention of Missouri (BGCM) is apparently continuing its pursuit of Missouri Baptist Convention (MBC) churches.
Brian Kaylor, a recent Southwest Baptist University graduate who now works as the special assistant for the BGCM executive director, has visited at least four churches in recent weeks, distributing material about the BGCM and requesting an audience with the pastor.
Some of Kaylor’s most recent stops have been at Santa Fe Trail Baptist Church, Boonville, First Baptist Church, Boonville, and Bethany Baptist Church, Sedalia. He earlier paid a visit to Miner Baptist Church, Sikeston. (See The Pathway, Sept. 9, "Confronting Trouble at the Church Doorstep.")
In a recent BGCM publication, Kaylor denies that he is attempting to lure churches away from the MBC.
"Recently I have visited many pastors to drop off some informative materials about the BGCM because I fell that regardless of the decision one makes it should at least be an informed on," Kaylor wrote. "I have met several pastors who disagree with the BGCM, but were willing to read our materials and were very kind to me.
"However, at one church the minister neither wanted to be informed or kind," Kaylor continued. "He aggressively told me what he thought the BGCM stood for and who some of our cooperating partners were. I tried to explain that he was misinformed. But even though he had never been to a BGCM meeting, he refused to accept that I, a BGCM employee, knew more about the convention than he did."
An employee at one of the churches visited by Kaylor said his visit had a clandestine feeling to it.
"It was one of the sneakiest things I have ever seen," said Bonnie Canida, church secretary. "We had a death in the church. I was working on details for the funeral dinner when this clean-cut, young man walked in. I was on the phone, and he leaned over and asked if he could leave a message. He wanted to talk to our pastor."
Santa Fe Trail had no pastor at the time.
"After I got off the phone and looked at the material he left, I could tell where he was from," Canida said. "I didn’t know who to call, so I called Ron Melton, our director of missions. "He asked me to send the material to him."
Canida described the BGCM visit as "terribly deceptive."
"He told me he had done a revival for our church a few years ago," she said. "I couldn’t remember him, so I went back through some of our old programs. The only thing I could figure was that he was on a college revival team.
"What he was doing here is nothing more than sheep stealing. Had I known who he was when he came in, I think I would have probably told him something."
Kaylor’s visit to Bethany produced no results. Bethany’s pastor, Monty Dunn, is a member of the MBC Executive Board and the convention’s legal task force.
"I was on a conference call with the legal task force," Dunn said. "I didn’t get to meet the young man, but I did e-mail David Clippard (MBC executive director) and told him about the note Kaylor left for me. Regrettably, I did not get to meet him."
Melton said he is "not very happy" about BGCM attempts to contact churches in his association. Kaylor reportedly also paid a visit to First Baptist Church, Boonville.
"I know that particular church (Santa Fe Trail) and I don’t think they’re going to talk to anybody," Melton said. "The only thing I can do is make sure the people are grounded and encourage them to stay as strong as they can with the Missouri Baptist Convention."
Kaylor said what he is doing is not an attempt to steal churches.
"Since no person or convention owns a church, how can one steal it?" he writes in the column. "We are only attempting to cooperate and minister with churches and individuals, not to control them or tell them what to do or think."
Kenny Qualls, MBC associate executive director, described Kaylor’s action as being in direct conflict with God’s Word.
"Proverbs 6 lists six things the Lord hates and "seven that are detestable to him," Qualls said. "The seventh thing listed is ‘a man who stirs up dissension among brothers.’ What’s happening here is a good example of stirring up dissension."