RAYTOWN – Messengers representing churches affiliated with the Missouri Baptist Convention (MBC) are gathering Oct. 23-25 at Connection Point Church (formerly First Baptist Church) in Raytown for their 183rd annual meeting.
The theme, taken from Luke 10:29, is, “Who is My Neighbor?”
Ken Parker, MBC president and senior pastor of First Baptist Church in Kearney, and MBC Executive Director John Yeats address the convention on Monday evening. Kirk Baker, pastor of First Baptist Church in Camdenton, presents the annual sermon Tuesday morning.
Kevin Ezell, president of the North American Mission Board, and Tom Elliff, former president of the International Mission Board, are the headline speakers Tuesday evening.
A special event is scheduled Wednesday morning for pastors and their spouses at the Hilton Garden Inn in Independence. Ezell and Elliff are speaking and answering questions following a continental breakfast.
Ryan Langford, minister of music – bands and singers – at Houston’s First Baptist Church (Texas), leads worship throughout the event.
During business sessions, attendees hear reports from the convention’s executive board, staff, committees and entities. Monday evening’s session opens with a final vote on the adoption of new governing documents. In addition, nationally recognized speaker Judy Dabler of Creative Conciliation in Creve Coeur addresses the personal and spiritual health of church leaders during special presentations on Tuesday.
MBC President Ken Parker presides over the annual meeting. Local churches elect messengers to the convention; the messengers in turn select a new slate of officers and vote on other business matters.
Missouri Baptist Disaster Relief volunteers are providing childcare Monday evening and Tuesday. Space is limited, and registration for each child is required at mobaptist.org/annual-meeting.
All sessions are open to the public. Follow convention activities on Twitter (@mobaptists) and be sure to include #mbc17 in your Twitter and Facebook postings.
In addition to the reports, messengers introduce, debate and vote on motions, or actions they wish the convention’s executive board, staff, committees, or entities to take. They also may introduce, debate, and vote on a variety of resolutions, which express the opinion of messengers on particular issues.
The annual meeting begins with pre-session music at 6:15 p.m. on Oct. 23 and concludes with the benediction at 9 p.m. Oct. 24, with the reservations-only breakfast meeting to follow at 9 a.m. Oct. 25.
The Missouri Baptist Pastors’ Conference also is held at Connection Point Church from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Oct. 23.
Complete details are available at mobaptist.org/annual-meeting.