Above: Pastors and church leaders observe a time of prayer as passages of Psalms are being read.
DEL CITY—Oklahoma Baptists Pastors’ Conference started the gathering for the Annual Meeting, Nov. 13, at Del City, First Southern. With the theme of the event being “Be Satisfied in Him,” this year’s Pastors’ Conference encouraged pastors to seek contentment in the Lord.
John Avant emphasizes living in the fear of the Lord.
John Avant, president of Life Action Network, opened the Pastors’ Conference, offering a message from Acts 9:31, emphasizing the importance of living in the fear of the Lord.
“Here is my definition of the fear of the Lord,” Avant said. “The fear of the Lord is the dread of missing the presence and power of God… Are you leading your people toward that?… Are you focusing more on the fears of our day, or do you stand up with a smile on your face and say, ‘Isn’t it incredible that God has chosen us to live in this day’?”
Adam Mask encourages looking to Jesus.
Adam Mask, pastor of Coweta, Community, encouraged pastors to “Look to Jesus” in his sermon based on Heb. 12:1-3.
“What is it that we look to that brings us satisfaction to our soul?” Mask asked. “As John Piper has said, ‘God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him.’”
Jordan Easley, pastor of Cleveland, Tenn., First, challenged pastors to “stay out of the spotlight,” emphasizing that their ministry is “meaningless without the power of God.”
Jordan Easley challenges pastors to ‘stay out of the spotlight.’
“If God calls you, He qualifies you,” Easley said. “Are you available and humble?”
Alton Fannin, pastor of Ardmore, First, opened his speaking time, sharing that he has been in pastoral ministry for 52 years. He preached from John 15:5 and encouraged pastors to abide in Christ.
“You are to be you, I am to be me, and we are both to be abiding in the Lord Jesus Christ,” Fannin said. “And Paul would say it like this: Stay focused on Jesus, abide in Jesus, be sure you give all the glory to Jesus. And do you know what the byproduct of that would be? A satisfied life.”
Drew Wright offers his testimony. He was one of three who offered testimonies during the Pastors’ Conference.
Philip Nation, vice president of Thomas Nelson Bible Publishers, preached from Hosea 14 and emphasized that to find true satisfaction, we must have “absolute unconditional surrender” to God.
“The Lord wants us to find our satisfaction in Him,” Nation said.
Testimonies were offered by Drew Wright, executive pastor at Jenks, First, and Rusty Fuller, pastor of Ada, Trinity. Ethan Wolfe, youth pastor at Purcell, Emmanuel and full-time student at Oklahoma Baptist University, observed a recent tradition at the Pastors’ Conference by delivering a message as an OBU pastoral student.
The 2024 Pastors’ Conference officers include, from left, Jeremy Freeman, first vice president and president-elect; Luke Holmes, president; and Landon Warren, second vice president.
Throughout the Pastors’ Conference were times of prayer, as passages of Psalms were read and pastors and others who attended were invited to come to the altar and pray through the passage that were shared.
Luke Holmes will be serving as president of the Pastors’ Conference in 2024, as he served this year as president-elect. Jeremy Freeman, pastor of Newcastle, First, was elected to be the first vice president and president-elect of next year’s Pastors’ Conference. Landon Warren, pastor of Snyder, First, was elected to serve next year as second vice president.
