Hello from sunny Orlando! I am attending my very first Southern Baptist Convention. It’s been quite an experience. Though I’ve been (pretty much) a Baptist all my Christian life, I’m fairly new to the Southern Baptist Convention. This year has thus been my first opportunity to attend the SBC annual meeting.

I flew down a couple days early to be a part of the SBC “Greater Things” Pastors’ Conference. That was a real blessing. Got to hear from speakers that included Ravi Zacharias, Al Mohler, Tony Evans, Francis Chan, and more. Today was the opening of the actual Annual Meeting. And I got to cast my very first vote as a “Messenger” to the convention. That vote was for the next SBC president.

There are over 10,000 people down. And even though you can never get that many Baptists to agree on everything (they are Baptists after all), there is nevertheless a unity of overall purpose. Everyone I’ve seen, heard from, and talked with loves the Lord and wants to advance His Kingdom.

To follow what’s happening at the SBC Annual Meeting, check out The Baptist Press Blog, which features periodic updates.