Unfortunately, many leaders in churches across Kentucky do not feel that they matter or that the church they serve is significant. But, when it comes to being part of the Kentucky Baptist Convention, every leader is important and every church matters.
In fact, our daily prayer is that every church will be a thriving church, and every leader will be a cared-for leader.
For that reason, it is imperative that every KBC affiliated church is represented at the 2025 KBC Annual Meeting. On November 11, Kentucky Baptists will gather at First Baptist Church Cold Spring for the 188th Kentucky Baptist Convention—and your KBC family needs you there.
1. Your voice matters: When Kentucky Baptists gather for our Annual Meeting, not unlike that first gathering in 1837, we will address issues of significance. Your voice is needed. We will hear reports from many of our ministry partners. We will consider a new slate of leaders to serve as trustees for our agencies and institutions. We will have an opportunity to consider new business, and we need as many voices as possible at the table.
2. Your vote matters: The KBC Annual Meeting is a time to vote on matters of importance to our cooperative work. We will vote on a new KBC president and the other officers who will help lead us into the upcoming year. We will vote on a variety of resolutions that will represent the voice of Kentucky Baptists as we speak on social and cultural issues that matter to our churches. While not every pastor or leader can attend the Annual Meeting, it is important that someone from each church attends because your vote matters.
3. Your presence matters: Just like a family reunion is not the same when members of the family are missing, the KBC Annual Meeting is not as great as it could be when members of our Kentucky Baptist family are unable to attend. There is something special about pastors rekindling connections, lay leaders having meals together, agency and institution personnel catching up with their ministry partners and all of us praising Jesus and remembering why we partner together in the first place.
4. Your cooperation matters: Part of what we do at the Annual Meeting each year, as well as the events that surround it like the Pastors’ Conference and Crossover, is remember why we decided to cooperate in the first place. Kentucky Baptists began partnering with sister churches in 1847 out of a biblical conviction that we can do more, and better work, together than any one church can do alone.
5. Your influence matters: We are at our best when we are working together to take the gospel to all parts of our state, our nation and our world. For our cooperative enterprise to be effective, it takes all of us working in partnership, pulling in the same direction. God can use you and your voice to help your congregation remain fully engaged, or become more engaged, in the life-changing gospel work we are doing together.
Join us in Cold Spring on Nov. 11 for our Annual Meeting, and come early if you can for the Reignite Pastors Conference and Hope for Northern Kentucky evangelistic events. To learn more about these events, or to register as a messenger or guest, go to https://www.kybaptist.org/annualmeeting/.
Dr. Todd Gray 