Aaron Burgner, board president, reflected on a recent mission trip to Kenya and reminded attendees, “God is always moving and working,” not only in Florida but throughout the world.

Florida Baptist State Convention President Mike Orr greeted the group and stated that he is prayerfully beginning to plan the 2025 Florida Baptist State Convention annual meeting and invited State Board of Missions members to join him in prayer as he selects a theme for the gathering.

Stephen Rummage, executive director-treasurer of the Florida Baptist Convention reported that Florida Baptist churches gave $28,058,383 through the Cooperative Program in 2024. Of that, the convention sent $14,077,603 to the Southern Baptist Convention’s Cooperative Program. The state retained $13,980,780 for missions and ministry efforts in Florida. Additionally, Florida Baptists gave $815,363 in 2024 to the Maguire State Mission Offering. The entire offering is designated to fund church planting initiatives in the state.

Rummage said, “I am thankful and grateful for what God had done in the state of Florida in 2024, financially and otherwise.”

Focusing on 1 Corinthians 9:25, Rummage stated that he is grateful for the heroes of the faith who live every moment of their lives in order “to make an eternal difference.” He encouraged State Board of Missions members to attend at least one stop of the upcoming Continuing Together tour, which begins on Feb. 20 and will include 14 locations in every region of the state. During this tour, Rummage will share his vision for the Florida Baptist Convention.

The Board referred three motions that were presented at the 2024 Florida Baptist State Convention to the appropriate committees for consideration. Two motions presented by Joel Breidenbaugh, messenger from Gospel Centered Church in Apopka, were referred to the Denominational Committee of the State Board of Missions. Breidenbaugh’s motions recommended amending bylaw 2 of the Florida Baptist State Convention, specifically in reference to defining standards for churches to be considered in friendly cooperation with the Florida Baptist Convention. The Board referred one motion presented by Cory Thorpe, messenger from First Baptist Church of Crawfordville, to the Administrative Committee. Thorpe’s motion referenced the digital availability of the Florida Baptist Convention’s annual guidebook. Both committees were instructed to report back at the 2025 annual meeting of the state convention.

Attendees received reports from four Florida Baptist Cooperating Ministries: The Baptist University of Florida, One More Child, Florida Baptist Financial Services and Lake Yale Baptist Conference Center.

The next board meeting will be April 24-25 in Jacksonville.

The retreat’s theme this year, Levántate y Anda (Get Up and Walk), focused on John 5:8, and challenged attendees to take up their lives again, since the pandemic, like the lame man picked up his mat and walked.

“Coming out of the pandemic many women stopped going to church, stopped being involved with God’s things, and let themselves go because they were home all day under quarantine,” said Claudia Rojas, leader of the Florida Baptist Hispanic Women’s Committee.

“We wanted to bring a theme that would encourage women back into God’s things and to remind them that they are beautiful.”

The women were challenged by a message from Ramon Medina, global pastor of Champion Forest Baptist Church’s Spanish Ministries in Houston, Texas, as well as from Nancy Pineda and Yudit Bermundes who led sessions encouraging women to get back to their church ministries and to take care of themselves. Connie Lamb also led a similar conference geared for the 12 young women attending the retreat.

“From my standpoint, it was just a very sweet time together. There was a lot of unity,” said Cindy Bradley, who leads women’s missions and ministry/missions’ education for the Florida Baptist Convention.

Many women came forward during an altar call to pray, while many prayed from their seats.

“God was in everything. Usually, there is some complaint about the food or the room, but there wasn’t a single complaint about any of that,” said Rojas.

“One woman had recently become a Christian, and she said that the retreat made her grow significantly in her faith,” shared Rojas.

Bradley encourages all Hispanic women to register for next year’s retreat.

“Any woman who wants to be inspired, challenged and refreshed, I would recommend you attend this conference,” Bradley said.

The theme, “For the Kingdom,” and Scripture found in Matthew 6:33 were the focus of the President’s Message given by Paul Purvis, lead pastor of Mission Hill Church in Temple Terrace.

When God’s kingdom comes, Purvis said, it will come in truth, grace, power and glory. Purvis urged Florida Baptists to “make sure our vision is aligned with God’s vision.

“We must maintain our focus; we must keep the main thing the main thing. We must stay on mission. As individuals, as churches, as a convention, we must start living and leading for the kingdom.”

Florida Baptists’ 160^th annual meeting drew 1,225 in attendance, including 822 messengers representing 412 churches, along with 403 guests.

Special committee report

Messengers adopted a report brought by a special committee tasked with examining policies and procedures governing sexual abuse allegation reporting, survivor care and prevention within the FBSC. The nine-person committee, chaired by JJ Johnson, pastor of South Tampa Fellowship, selected Telios Law, PLLC, based in Monument, Colorado, to conduct an independent review of such policies and procedures. Five cooperating ministries were included in the review: Florida Baptist State Board of Missions, Florida Baptist Children’s Homes, Lake Yale Baptist Conference Center, The Baptist College of Florida, and Florida Baptist Financial Services.

The committee reported that Telios Law noted there were no overwhelming flaws in the policies and procedures of the state’s cooperating ministries. The committee’s report then highlighted seven “areas of critical importance moving forward” and requested that the cooperating ministries provide updates at the 2023 FBSC annual meeting on the progress made in addressing these “opportunities for improvement.”

Budget adoption/policy revisions

Messengers approved a 2023 Cooperative Program goal of $29.5 million to be distributed 51% to Southern Baptist Convention causes and 49% to Florida Baptist Convention causes. The 51/49 split is the same distribution Florida Baptists have approved since 2016, the first budget recommendation after Tommy Green became executive director-treasurer in 2015. The approved 2023 budget is a $350,000 increase over the 2022 goal of $29.15 million.

Messengers also approved recommendations that would codify the process used with the cancellation of the 2020 annual meeting during the COVID-19 pandemic if a catastrophic event or other widespread emergency prevents the annual meeting of the FBSC from occurring in person in the future.

These recommendations came in response to a motion presented by Joel Breidenbaugh from Gospel Centered Church in Apopka at the 2021 FBSC annual meeting.

Baptist College of Florida honors Kinchen/looks to future

Messengers to the 2022 FBSC annual meeting honored Thomas Kinchen, president, The Baptist College of Florida, on his planned Dec. 31 retirement after serving in that role for more than 30 years. Messengers presented Kinchen with a standing ovation and a resolution expressing appreciation to him and his wife Ruth Ann for dedicating “their lives in service to their Lord and to Florida Baptists through their devotion and love for The Baptist College of Florida and its students.”

In response, Kinchen encouraged Florida Baptists, saying, “Embrace your school. Embrace the future. Grab tomorrow and run with it,” pledging his full support to president-elect Clayton Cloer.

A breakfast for BCF’s alumni and students on Monday, Nov. 14, and an afternoon fellowship on Tuesday, Nov. 15, provided opportunities for individuals to offer personal words of affirmation and thanks to Kinchen for his faithful service.

Messengers approved a recommendation to change the name of the college to Baptist University of Florida. The name change requires two consecutive years of approval by messengers to the FBSC annual meeting.

RISE for Life

In partnership with One More Child, Florida Baptists announced the launch of the RISE for Life initiative, which outlines the group’s mission through the acronym RISE:

• Reach every child
• Involve every church
• Strengthen every community
• Empower every family.

With the overturning of Roe v. Wade, the partnership calls on every Florida Baptist church to stand in the gap for the most vulnerable in society by partnering with pregnancy care centers, mentoring single mothers, becoming involved in foster care ministry, conducting resource drives to meet the practical needs of mothers and their children and taking other actions.

Lake Yale/Florida Baptist Financial Services

Florida Baptists affirmed the cooperating ministries of Lake Yale Baptist Conference Center and Florida Baptist Financial Services. Lake Yale offers a free pastor sabbatical program for all Florida Baptist pastors and pastoral staff. Florida Baptist Financial Services leaders shared that the organization has been able to provide higher education scholarships to Florida Baptist ministers and their families, provide a 13^th check to retired ministers and wives through Mission:Dignity and offer loans to Florida Baptist churches.

Officers elected

Four 2022-23 FBSC officers were elected by messengers, including three officers who will serve second terms. Purvis was reelected by acclimation to serve as FBSC president. Dwight Woods, senior pastor of Family of God Baptist Church in Panama City, was reelected by acclimation to a second term as first vice president. Healthcare professional John Bozard, a member of First Orlando, was reelected by acclimation to his second term as second vice president. Rounding out the slate of officers to be elected to serve Florida Baptists in 2022-23 was Janey Frost, minister of music and women at West Pensacola Baptist Church, elected by a ballot vote to serve as FBSC recording secretary

The 2023 FBSC annual meeting is set for Nov. 13-14 at Idlewild Baptist Church in Tampa.

The July 6-10 Super Summer Youth was held at Lake Yale Baptist Conference Center in Leesburg.

The new believers were joined by 13 children who prayed to receive Christ during Super Summer Kids that brought 228 campers to the July 13-16 event held at Lake Yale.

“We go to camp to see God move and at the end of the day, God moved,” said Nathan Schneider, Next Gen lead catalyst for the Florida Baptist Convention.

Super Summer Florida is a student ministry camp for Florida Baptists, by Florida Baptists. The camp is sponsored by the Florida Baptist Convention with funding provided by the Cooperative Program. The camp draws hundreds of students each year from around the Sunshine State who look forward to fun camp activities, fellowship and growing in their faith.

“After the first night alone, 10 churches saw at least one student pray to receive Christ for the first time,” Schneider said. On Friday night, three girls prayed to receive Christ and were baptized by their leader that night in a fountain on campus, he added.

“Two boys sitting near that fountain when the girls were baptized went back to their rooms and started talking about how they needed to be baptized,” Schneider said. “They spoke to their leader and at 2:30 in the morning they, too, were baptized in the fountain.”

An event like Super Summer typically sees a Gospel response by 10 percent of the youth in attendance, Schneider said. But this year’s Super Summer drew a response closer to 26 percent.

“A lot of prayer went into the event and a lot of people prayed for God to show up and move in the life of the youth and the kids.”

Shane Pruitt, National Next Gen Evangelism Director for the North American Mission Board (NAMB), served as the youth camp speaker. He is also a traveling communicator, evangelist and Bible teacher. Worship was led by Stephen Handley, worship pastor at Refuge Church in Jacksonville.

At kids’ camp, Theodore Lightbourne, administrative pastor at Aletheia Church in Gainesville, and Billy Young, pastor at Hopeful Baptist Church in Lake City, shared responsibilities as keynote speakers during the four-day camp. Handley also led worship during the week.

One of the children who made a profession of faith was “added to her church group at the very last minute when a spot became available. She prayed to receive Christ after Theodore shared the gospel on Wednesday night,” Schneider said.

“Another kid hurt his foot during one of the camp activities earlier in the day. During the worship he was in the lobby with his pastor who was treating his foot. They started talking and the student prayed to receive Christ as his Savior right there in the foyer.”

During youth Super Summer, 19 students answered calls to ministry and another 25 made other faith decisions including baptism and recommitments to Christ.

“We came to camp to see God move,” said Schneider. “We celebrated all the lives that came to Christ that week as well as mended relationships and calls to ministry.”

Super Summer 2022 dates are set for July 11-14, kids camp, and July 18-22, youth camp.

With accommodations ranging from hotel-style rooms to open-air campsites, the destination offers a desirable environment for any type of gathering. LYBCC prides itself on the ability to comfortably host gatherings ranging from 50 people, to as many as 1,000, and boasts an abundant variety of meeting spaces on site.

Like most organizations that host large groups, LYBCC has been significantly impacted by the COVID-19 virus outbreak. After a period of cautionary closure during March and April, the center has now reopened and looking forward to serving many groups yet this year. In fact, protocols now in place at LYBCC encourages visiting groups to enjoy the elements of nature offered by the property perhaps more than ever.

Describing how their precautions have impacted the approach to conferencing, LYBCC Executive Director Jeff Yant explained, “Groups are getting outside, under big oak trees in the shade, and utilizing the outdoor resources. We allot more pool time and use more amenities outside. There are fewer ‘indoor, everyone together in one area’ meetings, rather some meeting inside, some outside.”

LYBCC has taken significant steps to ensure guests’ safety. These include extra cleaning, implementing sanitization systems for all departments in addition to normal everyday cleaning, and using a commercial grade disinfectant cleaning system and low mist fogging in meeting spaces, the dining hall and hotel guestrooms. Also, the staff is keenly aware of the new changes, wearing masks and gloves in contact areas. Additional, cleaning is done before and after every guest interaction with surfaces cleaned twice.

Guests are also taking their own steps to ensure safety, modifying protocols to address their individual and group concerns. They have been particularly creative in the way they fit those protocols into a routine to cause as little disruption as possible, Yant reported.

A group who visited in June, for example, used logbooks to track temperature checks before allowing attendees to fellowship freely.  The small, daily concession allowed everyone to feel a bit safer, while still enjoying the camp.

Longtime Lake Yale conference attendee Linda Buckles considers it “my joy to attend conferences at this beautiful retreat center for many years and I have led groups of both seniors and women who have attended conferences there.”

She continued, “Jeff has always demonstrated such a genuine understanding of how God uses time away from the regular day-to-day routine of life at an amazing place like Lake Yale.

“The setting at Lake Yale made a tremendous difference in my spiritual life as a teen, as well as the lives of my sisters. The opportunity to get away from the world and draw near to God is invaluable.”

Mary Lou Hendry, Sanctity of Human Life Director for the Florida Baptist Children’s Homes, has scheduled the “Sound the Call Sanctity of Human Life” conference at Lake Yale for the past 20 years. “’Psalm 46:10, Be still and know that I am God,’ describes the impact of so many of our attendees,” during the event at the conference center, she said.

“Every year has been a sweet experience and many have encountered Christ in life changing ways. Some have described the conference as their ‘Soul Care’ experience.”

Churches and individuals wishing to plan an event or desiring to help support Lake Yale should contact their office at www.lybcc.com/.

LEESBURG–Jeff Yant of Leesburg has been named as executive director of Lake Yale Baptist Conference Center, effective Jan. 1.

He assumed the role previously held by Don Sawyer, who retired the past December after serving as executive director of the cooperating ministry of the Florida Baptist Convention for the past 17 years.

Prior to his new role, Yant served as director of development for the Lake Yale facility since 2017.

During his tenure, there was an increase in overall program outreach to Florida Baptist churches and outside groups and an inaugural staff campaign that reached more than 146 percent of its goal. He also formulated the first Women’s Conference Committee to rebrand and reshape the women’s programming at Lake Yale; and led to rebrand the center and help achieve its 501(c)3 status.

“Jeff has a very strong heart and passion for the ministry of Lake Yale Baptist Conference Center,” said David Burton of Middleburg, LYBCC board chairman who led the search committee. “This combined with his vision and capabilities of leadership will launch us into the new decade with confidence of what God intends to do in changing lives by the thousands year after year.”

Yant previously served as executive director of the ALACCA Bible Camp in ​Harpster, Idaho and YMCA Camp in ​Lincolnton, Ga.

LYBCC is a full-service retreat and conference center in the heart of central Florida.

For more information about Lake Yale Baptist Conference Center, located at 39034 County Road 452, Leesburg, Fla, contact 352-483-9800 or lakeyalebcc@lybcc.com

Worship led by bands from Turning Point Baptist Church and Iglesia Bautista Northside kicked off the weekend retreat which many reported on Facebook to be “refreshing.”

South Florida was well represented among those attending. Couples traveled from as far south as Key West and as far north as Jacksonville, reported Emanuel Roque, Hispanic church catalyst of the Florida Baptist Convention.

Speakers included Luis Gabriel Cesar, Jon Andrickson, Eliezer Perez and Carlos Velez.

Cesar, pastor of Primera Iglesia Bautista Ciudad Satelite en Mexico, shared tools with the couples on how to strengthen their marriages, their personal relationship with God and how to forgive.  Andrickson, member of the Strength Team, shared his personal testimony in which he described starting to attend church because his five-year-old daughter simply asked. Perez, pastor of Iglesia de Cristo para las Naciones and Velez, US director of Compass Latino, talked about intimacy in marriage and finances respectively.

Compass Latino is an international organization which seeks to teach believers to be good stewards of their resources and finances with the purpose of fulfilling the Great Commission.

Enrique Gonzales, volunteer director of Hispanic promoters for the Miami Baptist Association, said that Perez’s and Velez’s messages were a “significant addition to a wonderful learning time.” He also wrote in a Facebook post that the retreat was “inspiring and filled with blessings.”

“Our purpose is to strengthen and equip marriages so that God may fulfill his purpose through them,” said Roque.

This conference follows the Hispanic family conference “Familias Sanas y Puras” which also focused on building up the family.

“We are making an emphasis on family because it is an institution under heavy attack in our cultural context and to Hispanics, family is very important,” said Roque. In fact, he added, he has seen many people start attending church because of the conferences and events focusing on family.

On Sunday night the youth and young adults—who were also gathered at Lake Yale for their own separate retreat—joined the adults for a night of worship. A calling was made to families who needed prayer and many walked forward and prayed with pastors.

By Keila Diaz, Florida Baptist Convention, September 6, 2018

Four speakers addressed the group out of John 15:9 in which Jesus says “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love.” They were Noel Lozano, pastor of Turning Point Church; Carlos Finale, student pastor at Iglesia Bautista Northside; Sammy Rodriguez, student pastor at Calvary Clearwater; and Jose Marrero Jr., from Haverhill Baptist Church.

“Over the weekend the speakers and teachers fleshed out what love means in a relationship, towards others, yourself and God,” said Emanuel Roque, Hispanic church catalyst of the Florida Baptist Convention.

Youth and young adults worshipped together but had separate break-out sessions as well as conference sessions.

“In a world where love is defined in so many different ways and our young people are under attack, we need to go back to the one who defines what love is,” said Roque.

Finale focused on three aspects of what true love calls for.

“In addition to John 15:9, I also led them through the first verses of Hebrews 13,” he said. True love means obedience, enduring hardships while focusing on eternity, and loving other believers as well as non-believers, foreigners and prisoners.

Missions was also another aspect of love that was encouraged.

“God saved us so that we can take that message of salvation to other people…Just as Jesus was sent into the world, we are sent,” said Rodriguez.

“Missions is our top priority as Christians and we have to break away from a cultural Christianity.”

Rodriguez also emphasized the need for multigenerational and multicultural churches.

“We are all made in the image of God and when your church doesn’t look like your community you are missing an expression of the image of God. We must look like our context.”

As youth and young adults go back to school and to jobs, Roque encourages them to be disciples and to disciple.

“Our desire is not just to create a conference or camp but to equip them to live out their faith in their everyday.”

By Keila Diaz, Florida Baptist Convention, September 5, 2018

Historically the conference center had served as a department within the Florida Baptist Convention.

By transforming it to a cooperating ministry model, the new entity would remain linked to the Florida Baptist Convention, much like Florida Baptist Children’s Homes and The Baptist College of Florida, but would be legally separate and distinct with its own board, leadership and budget.

Creating the new cooperating ministry would enable Lake Yale to generate income through the solicitation of gifts from individuals and churches, and to apply for grants from foundations and other organizations.

Additionally, the move would help the Convention further streamline its operations.

The change in status, similar to the model used by the Alabama Baptist Convention, was recommended initially by Tommy Green, executive director-treasurer of the Florida Baptist Convention.

In recent years, Lake Yale has struggled to generate enough revenue to cover all operating costs and capital expenditures. Green views the proposal as the “most prudent model for the viability of Lake Yale.”

Don Sawyer, director of Lake Yale Conference Center, said incorporating the center as its own entity, “is an alignment and alliance of mission and ministry.”

“Often a camp and conference center is able to become a stronger ministry in a separate structure, and is therefore able to serve the parent organization to a greater degree,” he said. “This way of organizing can help enhance the relationship between the convention and Lake Yale, with a clear focus on its ministry and the ways it serves the mission of the Florida Baptist Convention.”

Sawyer offered several benefits of establishing Lake Yale as a separate corporation:

— the ability to raise capital and annual support funds. Lake Yale will be able to raise funds to provide for capital improvements and new projects, as well as annual operating support. “This support can come from a broad base of persons who love Lake Yale and its ministry,” he added.

— a Board of Directors focused on Lake Yale “will be chosen specifically to assist the center in maintaining a strong organization, accomplishing its mission, and raising the necessary funds for fiscal viability.” In essence, this creates a group of advocates which widens the base of support and involvement.

— improved financial stability, as Lake Yale will be responsible for its own operating finances, reducing potential risk for the Florida Baptist Convention. “Yet, Lake Yale will continue to be blessed with the support of the Convention through its many programs using its facilities,” Sawyer added.

If approved by messengers, the new corporation will begin operations on Jan. 1, 2018.

By Barbara Denman, Florida Baptist Convention, October 25, 2016