By William Perkins
Editor
Lloyd Sweatt, pastor of Meadowood Church, Amory, was reelected without opposition to a second term as president of the Mississippi Baptist Convention (MBC) Oct. 25 during the first session of the 2022 Annual Meeting at First Church, Jackson.
Sweatt was nominated by Don Gann, senior pastor of First Church, Oxford. The nomination was seconded by Wade Stevens, senior pastor of Longview Point Church, Hernando. As no other nominations were made, Sweatt was reelected by an “all for one, one for all” vote cast by MBC Recording Secretary Michael Weeks, pastor of Pleasant Hill Church, Olive Branch.
Also at the first session, the Sexual Abuse Response Team (SART) appointed by Sweatt earlier this year issued a preliminary report on its work and announced that the Executive Committee of the Mississippi Baptist Convention Board (MBCB) has allotted $250,000 to be used immediately by churches toward membership and training with MinistrySafe, a Texas-based legal ministry that provides “a complete child safety system designed to reduce the risk of child sexual abuse,” according to the group’s website.
MBC member churches can sign up for the $250 per church subsidy at the MinistrySafe website (click on hyperlink in preceding paragraph). Enter code MS2022.
Brad Eubank, SART chairman and senior pastor of First Church, Petal, told messengers a final report on the teams’ work will be issued at the 2023 Mississippi Baptist Convention Annual Meeting.
In the meantime, Eubank said, the response team is issuing special resources that can be used by churches including a First Steps booklet, poster, and card. The resources are not copyrighted and may be reproduced.
The Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention also has available the Caring Well Initiative. For more information, click here.
Messengers also heard reports from Danny Smith, convention board president and pastor of First Church, Tunica; and Johnny Ervin, MBCB transitional director for church planting/revitalization.
Sweatt preached the President’s Address to close out the session. Worship through music was presented by the Worship Team of Meadowood Church, Amory. The Bible Treasure devotional was presented by Hance Dilbeck, president and CEO of GuideStone Financial Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention in Dallas. Scripture Reading of Exodus 19:1-6 was provided by Jordan Reed, member, First Church, Bruce.
The second session of the 2022 MBC Annual Meeting convened at 1:45 p.m. Click here to watch the session on livestream.
