Hendersonville pastor Bruce Chesser to be nominated as TBC president; FBC Concord is hosting event
Baptist and Reflector
FRANKLIN — “By All Means, Win TN” is the theme of the 2019 Summit, scheduled for Nov. 17-20 at First Baptist Church, Concord, in Knoxville.
Summit festivities begin on Sunday, Nov. 17, with the “Tennessee Reunion” at 6 p.m. at First Baptist, Concord. The worship service will feature Rick Barnes, men’s basketball coach at the University of Tennessee, one of the most decorated and accomplished head coaches in school history.
Also on Sunday night, the All Nations Worship will be held at Black Oak Heights Baptist Church in Knoxville.
Messengers to the Summit are heroes, but heroes can’t run on empty, observed Randy C. Davis, president and executive director of the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board.
Davis encouraged Tennessee Baptists to attend Summit to see old friends and make new ones, to be recharged spiritually, to help influence the strategy and direction of the convention, to grow in ministry and develop personally and to learn new ideas so that “by all means, you can go win Tennessee and change your world.”
On Monday, the Tennessee Baptist Pastors Conference will meet in the afternoon and evening at First Baptist, Concord. Program participants include Davis; Corey Cain, pastor, Maplewood Baptist Church, Paris; Josh Carter, pastor, Remedy City Church, Portland, Ore.; Roc Collins, strategic objectives director, TBMB; Brady Cooper, pastor, New Vision Baptist Church, Murfreesboro; Kewon Foster, pastor, Out of Love Ministries, Atlanta; and Andy Hammond, worship pastor, Stevens Street Baptist Church, Cookeville.
The annual meeting of the convention, where business is conducted, convenes on Tuesday, Nov. 19, at FBC, Concord. Messengers will conduct business, hear ministry reports and inspirational messages.
As in the past few years, a number of breakout sessions will be offered on relevant topics for Tennessee Baptists. Among the breakout sessions are:
- Sustainable Discipleship, led by Randy Stone, New Orleans (La.) Baptist Theological Seminary;
- Beginning the Revitalization Conversation at Your Church, led by Steve Holt, TBMB;
- Financial Matters with GuideStone; led by Greg Love, GuideStone Financial Resources;
- How to Keep My Church Safe and Secure, led by Mark LeMay, TBMB;
- Keeping Your Ministry Safe and Secure, led by Vicki Hulsey, TBMB;
- Sunday School as Strategy, led by Allan Taylor, LifeWay Christian Resources;
- Effective Ways to Raise Association Funds, led by Jim Breeden, St. Louis (Mo.) Metro Baptist Association;
- Discovering the Mission and Vision for Your Youth Ministry, led by Jay Barbier, TBMB; and
- What Every Messenger Needs to Know, led by William Maxwell, TBMB.
Messengers also will have the opportunity to elect a new slate of officers during the business sessions. As of press time on Monday (Sept. 9), one candidate has been announced for the presidency of the Tennessee Baptist Convention. Larry Robertson, pastor of Hilldale Baptist Church, Clarksville, informed the Baptist and Reflector of his intention to nominate Bruce Chesser, pastor of First Baptist Church, Hendersonville.
“Bruce has a long track record of ministry faithfulness and biblical fidelity,” Robertson said. Noting that Chesser did not seek the position and was hesitant to allow his name to come before the convention, “his heart is committed to serve the body of Christ, the kingdom of God and his family of faith.”
Robertson observed that Chesser is involved at every level of Southern Baptist life — association, state and national. He has been a trustee of the Tennessee Baptist Children’s Homes and is a trustee of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky.
First Baptist, Hendersonville, is a strong supporter of convention causes. In 2018, the church ranked fifth among Tennessee Baptist Convention churches in total gifts through the Cooperative Program with $369,603 (approximately 3.4 percent of undesignated gifts). First Baptist also ranked eighth in the TBC in number of baptisms with 178 in 2018.
Robertson called Chesser a “solid conservative, a soul-winner, and a humble pastor who loves his people and his people love him.”
Other program participants during Summit include H.B. Charles, pastor, Shiloh Metropolitan Baptist Church, Jacksonville, Fla., Hollie Miller, retired pastor, Sevier Heights Baptist Church, Knoxville; and Matt Papa, songwriter, worship leader and author.
Also during the business sessions, messengers will have the opportunity to approve trustees and members of TBC committees and institutions. See reports from the Committee on Committees and Committee on Boards on pages 6-7 (of the print edition of the B&R).
Visit www.tbcsummit.org for the latest on updates, speakers, registration, breakout sessions, the exhibit hall, special events and more. Also, read the Baptist and Reflector for more information as it becomes available.
Online registration is now open.
— See also a column on Summit from David Green, president of the Tennessee Baptist Convention.
