We live among a gold mine of young preachers in Kentucky.
Kentucky Baptists have access to three separate institutions where hundreds of young men are being trained for ministry leadership and many of them are being trained to preach.
Clear Creek Baptist Bible College in Pineville and Boyce College and The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville are working daily to train up the next generation of faithful preachers. Many will one day pastor churches here in Kentucky.
We need these schools to succeed because out of our 2,350 churches, there are approximately 280 currently without a senior pastor.
Whether you are looking for a pastor or just interested in cooperating in the development of future pulpiteers, you can help by inviting one of these young men to preach in your church. Here is why you might consider having a student preach to your congregation for one or even multiple Sundays.
1. Because of the investment: Investments are about unmet potential with a prospect for future payoff. Many of these young men have vast amounts of underdeveloped talent with the promise of a life of ministry faithfulness. Everyone must start somewhere. Dr. Albert Mohler, resident of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary for more than three decades, developed his preaching voice by pastoring a small Kentucky Baptist church in Trimble County. That church helped a young Al Mohler become the leader he is today.
2. Because of the experience for your church: It is good for your church to host a young preacher who has answered the call of God on his life and is preaching his first sermons. I have never forgotten the kindness of Bro. Darell Eldridge and Blue Spring Baptist Church in inviting me to preach my first sermon. I preached through the entire book of Jonah in one message. The church survived and has invited me back multiple times since then. The people in your church will be energized at the idea of helping a young preacher get started in the exercise of his gifts and calling.
3. Because of the need: The only way to learn how to preach is to preach. The only way for a young preacher to develop his own preaching voice is to get reps. You cannot get better at preaching without practicing the ministry of preaching. Between Clear Creek, Boyce and Southern, not to mention students who are doing online Bible college or seminary training while living in Kentucky, there are likely 200–300 young men in our state who need preaching experience and would jump at the chance to preach during any service in your church — if you just give them gas money to come.
4. Because of the fruit: You may be surprised by how the Lord uses these young men in your church. I remember as a child growing up attending church in rural Lyon County and a young soldier from Fort Campbell being invited to preach a Sunday morning service. God used him to stir our church. Oftentimes these young preachers pray fervently and labor hard as they are invited to preach in their early days of ministry. It is very likely that your church will be blessed because of their preaching.
5. Because of the family: These young Southern Baptist preachers in training are our spiritual children. Many of them have grown up in Kentucky Baptist churches. They are part of the family, and we have a responsibility to help them grow and develop. We can then be appropriately proud of them when we see how God uses them in ministry.
How can your church provide an opportunity for a young preacher to gain preaching experience? Here are some options:
- Look to your own congregation. Is there someone in your church who feels called to preach that needs to be given an opportunity?
- Look to your local Baptist association. Your associational missions strategist will likely have a list of young men in your community who are called to preach and looking for opportunities.
- Look at the schools. For Clear Creek you can reach out to Dr. Brad King, Dean of Students at brad.king@ccbbc.edu. At The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary or Boyce College you can reach out to their general contact number at (800) 626-5525. There is also a web page dedicated to ministry opportunities.
- Look to your state convention. You can call, text or email any KBC team member, and we will help you. My email address is todd.gray@kybaptist.org if you would like to contact me directly.
Imagine what might happen in our state if we work together to nurture these young men as they grow into the preachers God is calling them to become. We will likely become a state where we see more young men answer the call of God on their lives. Many of these preachers in training will likely become preachers and pastors God can use to help churches reach Kentucky and the world for Christ.
Dr. Todd Gray 