English
Korean
Spanish
LUBBOCK—Messengers to the 2025 Southern Baptists of Texas Convention Annual Meeting held Oct. 27-28 at Southcrest Baptist Church conducted several items of business to support the work of the convention for the coming year.
Caleb Turner, senior pastor of Mesquite Friendship Baptist Church, was elected president Tuesday morning. Turner formerly served as chairman of the SBTC Executive board—the youngest ever to hold that responsibility.
Ed Johnson III was re-elected vice president. He is lead pastor of Harvest Fellowship Baptist Church in DeSoto and was nominated by Averri LeMalle, senior pastor of The Church at Jersey Village. Kason Branch, senior pastor of Creekstone Church of North Richland Hills, nominated Amy Hinote to serve a second term as convention secretary. She is a pastor’s wife from First Baptist Church in Justin. All three officers were elected by acclamation.
The convention’s operating budget for 2026 will be $27.83 million, a .18% increase over the 2025 budget. The budget is essentially flat, with a $50,000 increase funded from designated funds. The SBTC budget continues to call for 55% of undesignated receipts to be sent to the Southern Baptist Convention, while 45% of undesignated receipts remain in Texas to mobilize SBTC churches.
The convention’s Executive Board submitted resolutions commemorating the 100th anniversary of the Cooperative Program and the Baptist Faith and Message. Jim Richards, SBTC executive director emeritus, presented the resolutions on behalf of the board. Reading from the resolution, Richards described the Cooperative Program as “a missions-funding strategy God has blessed to support and strengthen Southern Baptist efforts to share the gospel throughout the world.”
Messengers considered five resolutions produced by the Resolutions Committee. The first honored Danny Forshee, lead pastor of Great Hills Baptist Church, as he completed his second and final year as SBTC president. Another honorific resolution expressed gratitude to Southcrest Baptist Church and its senior pastor, David Wilson, for their “kind hospitality and generosity.”
The remainder of the resolutions highlighted the importance of freedom of speech; the need for prayer, fasting, and repentance; and an appreciation for the convention’s Texas Ethics and Religious Liberty Committee for “[representing] our biblical convictions before the Texas Legislature.”
The convention registered 790 messengers for their West Texas meeting. Registered guests brought the total number of attendees to 1,289.
Three motions regarding Fielder Church in Arlington were ruled out of order due to being inconsistent with the convention’s Constitution and Bylaws. In August, the SBTC Executive Board formed a committee to review the Constitution and Bylaws. The committee will review the documents in their entirety to ensure the convention’s polity and affiliation requirements are clearly stated, particularly as they relate to the office and title of pastor. Proposed amendments will be published 90 days before being voted on by messengers to the 2026 annual meeting.
The 2026 SBTC Annual Meeting will be hosted by First Baptist Church Forney Oct. 26-27, 2026.
