Buddy Hunt serves as regional ministry partner for eastern Oklahoma, a role created to encourage pastors and support church health. His region includes 410 churches affiliated with Oklahoma Baptist associations and 40 Native American churches in areas ranging from Durant to McAlester to Vinita.
“My main task is not to share with pastors what services the convention has to offer, but to hear their heart and their needs and figure out how we can help them,” Hunt said. “I bring pastors together and remind them ‘you’re not alone, you’ve got these other pastors here near you. We’re all in this together.”
Every week, Hunt drives 800-1,200 miles to visit churches and associations.
His responsibilities include helping churches fill vacant positions, mediating church conflict, leading evangelism training, coordinating marriage conferences and holding retreats for pastors and their wives.
“The Cooperative Program is the avenue that provides ministry help for our churches to share the Gospel,” Hunt explained. “Without it, we could not provide the assistance these churches need. It enables churches to keep moving forward.”
Oklahoma Baptists employs four fulltime regional ministry partners. These men are encouragers and servants, ready to help any pastor and church in their area. When you give to your church, and in turn to the Cooperative Program, you support Hunt and many other ministers like him.
“This role has helped me realize that some pastors feel so isolated and at their wit’s end,” Hunt said. “One told me, ‘It was the providence of God that you stopped by – you don’t know how much you encouraged me.’ We are assisting them so that they can shepherd, because healthy pastors lead healthy churches.”
The Cooperative Program funds ministry resources and roles that support your church and association. To learn more, visit oklahomabaptists.org/cp.
