By Brian Blackwell, Baptist Message staff writer
SHREVEPORT, La. (LBM) – During the 2024 Louisiana Baptist Pastor’s Conference, Nov. 11, hosted by Broadmoor Baptist Church, Shreveport, speakers offered words of encouragement and conviction to pastors about remaining faithful in all areas of their lives.
Pastors Conference President Heath Peloquin, pastor with Summer Grove Baptist Church, Shreveport, thanked the pastors, other staff members and their wives for remaining faithful in all areas of their lives.
Pastors Conference President Heath Peloquin, pastor with Summer Grove Baptist Church, Shreveport, thanked the pastors, other staff members and their wives for remaining dedicated to their respective church, family and community.
“When you and I trust Jesus, He gives us the grace to rest in His arms,” he said. “Pastors’ wives, you are treasures. My wife is a treasure to me. I can’t do this without mine; you’re important.
“Maybe you say, ‘Well, I’m not a senior pastor or senior pastor’s wife,” he continued. “Did you know your role is important to the Kingdom? Did you know that what you’re doing matters?”
GEVAN SPINNEY
Gevan Spinney, pastor with First Baptist Church, Haughton, spoke during the opening session from 1 Samuel 7 and told pastors God has a deep love for them, God’s promises are not based upon performance and God’s purpose for their lives and ministries is beyond what they can imagine.
“The place where you may serve, it may be difficult and every Monday you may want to resign,” Spinney said. “You may have your resume out, and you may be looking all the time. But I want you to remember: God’s equipped you, God’s never leaving you. He sent you to love those people who are His and sometimes are hard to love. But the more you love them, the more they see God’s love coming through you.”
He reminded pastors that some of them are battlers like David and some are builders like his son, Solomon, who completed the temple. Both are important for the Kingdom, he said.
“God has battlers and God has builders,” he said. “Are you okay with the current assignment you have that if God is appointed you to win battles that the next guy is going to come and build on? Are you okay with fighting the fights and battling over the things that send you into your prayer closet or you and your wife agonize over?”
He encouraged the pastors to finish well.
“I want you to love His Bride the way He loves His Bride,” Spinney said. “I want to be faithful.”
RICHARD TAYLOR
Richard Taylor, director with Corpus Christi Baptist Association, Corpus Christi, Texas, told pastors they must proclaim the hope and promises of Christ.
Preaching from Acts 3, Taylor said Peter and John recognized they were not in competition with each other, prayer was important and those who were broken were image bearers of God.
“We can do more together than any of us can do alone,” Taylor said. “It’s amazing how much we could accomplish if we got concerned.”
He told pastors they must prioritize prayer.
“Pastor, it starts with us,” he said. “Yeah, we know how to pray when our back is up against the wall, don’t we? We know how to pray when we’re in trouble. We know how to pray when there’s too much month at the end of the money. But until prayer becomes a priority in each and every one of our lives – independently and all of our lives collectively – we will never accomplish what God has called for us.”
Taylor said just as God loves all people equally, Christ followers must do the same.
“God loves all people, regardless of their skin tone, regardless of their ethnicity, regardless of their socio-economic status, regardless of their voting (preference),” he said. “Yes, God loves all people equally, and we better learn how to love all people equally.”
WAYLON BAILEY
Waylon Bailey, pastor with First Baptist Church, Covington, used Acts 6 to challenge pastors to be mindful that Satan seeks to take out the Church.
“Satan seeks to destroy the Church, your ministry and my ministry,” he said. “Jesus said Satan came to kill, to steal and to destroy. And he seeks to destroy our ministry, our witness, our testimony of our churches because he can do so in these subtle ways. He wants an untaught Church, a Church that knows on the surface but not deeply within, a Church that is built for the culture and the things of the world but not the things of God.”
Bailey reminded pastors that despites Satan’s attempts, God is faithful and has given the Church a remedy against these attacks – godly leaders, repentance and response to Christ.
“It is time for us to open the door and let Christ lead according to His will and let Him bless according to His great power,” he said. “We kind of think that we are weak and we’re struggling. But as long as we have God and the Holy Spirit, and as long as we put our trust in Christ the Lord and teach His Word, we will not struggle.”
DAVID ALLEN
David Allen, a professor with Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary, Cordova, Tennessee, cited Luke 19 to remind pastors that Jesus is a “lost and found kind of Savior.”
Allen said Jesus’ mission was to seek and save the lost, including the tax collector Zacchaeus who came down from the sycamore tree and was welcomed by Jesus. He told pastors that Jesus’ mission to save the lost should be their mission too.
“’For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save the lost,’” he said. “That’s His mission. That’s your mission. That’s His goal. That’s my goal. This should be the goal of every Southern Baptist, every Southern Baptist church and every state convention, to herald the truth that the Son of Man has come to seek and to save the lost.
“Let’s get about His business,” he said. “Oh yeah, don’t forget about the men in trees.”
HANCE DILBECK
Hance Dilbeck, president and CEO of GuideStone Financial Resources of the SBC, closed the Pastors Conference by sharing that Jesus is the Exalted Lord, Warrior King and Great High Priest.
“When Jesus says all authority has been given to me on heaven and on earth, he’s saying don’t forget Psalm 110,” Dilbeck said, basing His message on that passage. “He’s exalted, following the humiliation of the cross. He’s exalted, following His finished work on the cross.”
Dilbeck said Jesus has taken action to engage His enemies, extend His Kingdom, establish justice and shatter the enemy.
“We’re not fighting for Jesus,” he said. “We’re fighting along Jesus. He’s the King. Don’t just think of Him seated at the right hand. Think of Him as leading you into this fight.”
LANGIAPPE
The afternoon session included a time of prayer for pastors and their families, as well as for Louisiana Christian University.
A pastor prayed with his wife during a time of prayer at the Pastors Conference.
“The Lord is faithful, and He will establish you and guard you against the evil one,” Peloquin told the crowd during the prayer time. “For some of you, the enemy has told you, ‘You’re not enough,’ the enemy has told you. ‘There’s something better out there.’ The enemy’s told you, ‘Why don’t you give up and go get a real job?’ Don’t give in to the evil one. Don’t try to talk yourself out of something. Just say, ‘Lord, here I am. Speak to Me.’”
Finally, officers were elected to lead the 2025 Pastors Conference: Tommy Kiker, pastor, East Leesville Baptist Church, president; Joey Smith, pastor, Grayson Baptist Church, vice president; and Garrison Griffith, First Baptist Church, Wisner, secretary.
