By Megan Young
Editor
CLINTON, Miss. — In his report to the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission’s board of trustees, newly elected ERLC president Evan Lenow championed a church-first approach as the Southern Baptist Convention entity looks to the future.
The meeting was held Sept. 15-16 on the campus of Mississippi Christian University, where Lenow previously served as the director of the Institute for Christian Leadership, director of Church and Minister Relations, and chair of the Christian Studies Department before being elected president of the ERLC in April.
Lenow began by stating that the work of the ERLC is more important now than it has ever been and emphasizing the need for a “strong, healthy, influential” ERLC to address rapidly evolving cultural topics in a biblical manner.
“This is not the world that you and I grew up in,” he said. “It has changed substantially. We’re facing difficult questions at a faster pace than perhaps we ever have before.”
From transgenderism in sports to a rising dependence on artificial intelligence, Lenow stressed the importance of the ERLC taking a proactive role in guiding the cultural conversation.
“We need to be able to project as best as possible what is coming towards us in the culture so that we can be out in front of it and leading rather than reacting,” he said. “We need to be able to have conversations, bring people together, and be a unified voice that Southern Baptists are looking for.”
That unified voice is critical in the extremely divided culture in which we live, said Lenow. Divisions appear not only in the secular culture, but within the SBC as Christians differ on how best to engage the world around them. The ERLC, therefore, is tasked by the convention to speak into the cultural confusion and to help equip churches to address controversial issues.
“It is our responsibility to resource the churches because the churches are the ones on the front lines of the cultural conversations and on the front lines of engaging what’s happening in their communities,” he said.
In order to effectively equip Southern Baptists, Lenow set forth three goals for the future of the ERLC. First and foremost, the ERLC should strive to be a trusted voice in the midst of cultural chaos.
“We need to be that voice that people go to and say, ‘Even if we disagree with them, we know that they are making sound arguments and that they are a trusted voice to communicate clearly what Southern Baptists care about,’” he said.
Second, the ERLC’s primary task should be to resource the churches. Every entity within the SBC is given a number of ministry assignments by the Convention, all beginning with two words – “assist churches.”
“One thing that the Convention has communicated clearly to the entities is that our job is to assist churches,” he said. “So we want to do that primarily by being a provider of resources.”
Finally, the ERLC should aim to be a connector: connecting the church to experts in various fields of public policy, connecting that policy to real-world ministry contexts, and ultimately, connecting people to Christ. That, said Lenow, is “the most important thing that we do.”
Lenow concluded his report by voicing his hopefulness for the ERLC. A strong staff, increased support from the convention, and a clear direction for the future have all helped focus the ERLC and renew its commitment to the local church.
“The ERLC is church-first,” said Lenow. “That’s where our focus is. It doesn’t mean we don’t do some of the other things we’ve always done. Obviously we’re not giving up on policy, we’re not giving up on advocacy and things like that. We’re just doing it with a renewed focus of being church-first.”
Psalm 139 Project update
Rachel Wiles, ERLC deputy chief of staff and director of the Psalm 139 Project, updated trustees on the project’s initiative to help pregnancy centers minister to abortion-vulnerable women by providing ultrasound equipment for them to use. So far in 2026, the Psalm 139 Project has placed seven ultrasounds, with two more currently being prepared for placement.
She also spoke about the ERLC’s emphasis of the Psalm 139 Project, “Across State Lines,” which partners churches and state conventions in pro-life states with pregnancy centers in pro-choice states where there is often more need for life-saving resources.
Administrative & Finance Committee report
Bobby Reed, ERLC’s chief financial officer, proposed three financial recommendations for 2026-2027 that were unanimously approved by the trustees, including an operating budget of $3,171,739, a slight increase from last year’s $3,141,910.
Communications Committee report
Lindsay Nicolet, ERLC director of communications, emphasized the vital role communication plays in building trust and cultivating connection with Southern Baptist pastors and leaders.
Nicolet debuted a new ERLC awareness video for the trustees that will be played at upcoming state conventions. The goal of the video, she said, is to “create a tone of trust and conversation” that will enable people to “get to know Dr. Lenow as he leads the ERLC.”
Research Committee report
RaShan Frost, ERLC director of research and senior fellow, reminded the trustees of the ERLC’s commitment to resourcing the local church. To that end, the Resourcing the Church Initiative, with the input of pastors, creates free church guides that address the most pressing ethical dilemmas facing local congregations.
He introduced trustees to the newest church guide on marriage and family and informed them of the intention of creating four guides a year.
Katy Roberts, ERLC senior policy manager, then shared that the ERLC continues to have distinct influence in Washington, D.C., because of its permanent presence and Baptist distinctives, which propels the ERLC’s advocacy in D.C.
She also shared the topics that have been the largest public policy priorities for the ERLC over the past year, most notably opposing further access to the abortion pill and opposing radical gender ideology.
Executive Committee report
In response to a referred motion from messengers to the 2026 SBC Annual Meeting sent to all entities, the trustees approved a response that affirmed the ERLC’s commitment to accountability and transparency.
Additionally, trustees discussed and approved a Leader Care Policy intended to address the holistic health of the ERLC president. A Leader Care Team will be appointed by the executive committee of the board to collaborate with the president on developing and faithfully implementing a leader care plan. This action is in keeping with new Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability (ECFA) standards. The ERLC has been a member of ECFA since 2014.
The need for an ERLC Committee Study Group was then discussed. A proposal was made and unanimously adopted to reevaluate committee structure to better align with ERLC ministry assignments.
Last, trustees approved a three-year plan to rebuild trust within the Convention by allowing for “maximum engagement at the entity level with state conventions and with local churches and their leaders.” The plan would also retool resources “to include evaluating, updating and developing ERLC content that is biblically faithful, practically useful, and responsive to the needs of Southern Baptist churches.”
Miscellaneous business
Joining the trustee meeting, Zack Pruitt, newly elected ERLC vice president of public policy and general counsel, thanked the trustees for their warm welcome.
Having formerly served as senior counsel and director of U.S. government relations with Alliance Defending Freedom, Pruitt noted his experience advocating on a national level and his desire to bring that expertise to bear at the ERLC.
Recognition of incoming and outgoing trustees
The trustees honored two outgoing members during the meeting: Traci Griggs from North Carolina and Nathan Lugbill from Indiana. Both have served on the board of trustees since 2019.
Five new members were also welcomed: Jeff Thompson from Arkansas, Jessica Dixon from Colorado, Bruce Kirk from Illinois, Andrew “Spence” Spencer from Michigan and Tim Garrison, an at large member from Missouri.
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