Announcement from Executive Director Search Team of the BSCM

The following is the announcement made yesterday regarding the future ministry opportunity for me to serve the Baptist State Convention of Michigan. I am grateful for God's direction, but greatly humbled by this opportunity to serve.

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CLICK TO READ:
Bio Presented * Recommendations from Search Team

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September 23, 2010

Dear Baptist State Convention of Michigan,

We are delighted to inform you of the person we believe God has brought to us to recommend to serve as our next Executive Director of the Baptist State Convention of Michigan.

Your team consisted of members who have served the Baptist State Convention of Michigan for a total of two hundred and sixty years. During our first meeting these people considered and unanimously approved a Team Covenant of Agreements. This covenant was posted in the Baptist Beacon. Behavior, Spiritual Preparation, Prayer, Unity, Honesty and Openness, Confidentiality, Participation, and Faithfulness were all agreed to be honored.  Then we agreed that our hearts desire and prayer to God would be that He grants us a conclusion of unanimity. I am glad to report… the covenant has been honored and God has granted us our request. We have a unanimous conclusion and recommendation.

After nine months in our Search Process, working through meetings as a team, working between meetings at home as individuals, and working through e-mail, we would calculate the investment of time to be well over a thousand man-hours. There were at least three marathon meetings where the team saw the midnight hour arrive. The team considered over ninety resumes from people throughout the Southern Baptist Convention. We assessed and ranked all resumes until we reached a final eleven, a final three, and then our final person. To God be the glory, He has blessed our labors and brought us to this unanimous recommendation.

We want you to know that we, as your Search Team, make this recommendation to you in a vote of unanimity that is expressed in a “true spirit of unity.”  We are indeed, one in spirit. We are absolutely confident this is the will of God for us as we recommend Dr. Robert E. Gilstrap, Jr. to serve the Baptist State Convention of Michigan as our Executive Director.                  

We will be making our formal recommendation to the convention during the Wednesday afternoon session of our annual convention meeting, October 27, 2010. We hope you are able to attend and participate in this monumental moment.

In the pages to follow you will find a brief biography for Dr. Gilstrap and a compilation of our personal recommendations as members of the Executive Director Search Team.

Thank you for your prayers for the team, the process, the candidate and the work and future of our convention.

CLICK TO READ:
Bio Presented * Recommendations from Search Team

Gratefully His and Sincerely Yours,

George B. A. Fountain

Executive Director Search Team Leader