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HOUSTON—The numbers are undeniably encouraging.
This year, Send Network SBTC—the church planting partnership between the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention and the North American Mission Board—conducted 71 assessments of potential planters. Of those, 34 were conducted in Spanish, 32 in English, three in Mandarin, one in Korean, and one in Romanian.
Additionally, Send Network SBTC recently completed the largest assessment weekend in the history of the national Send Network, with 31 planters assessed. By the end of this year, Send Network SBTC will have planted between 60-65 churches—the largest number since 2005.
But there’s another number that drives the mission of Send Network SBTC. During a church planter commissioning service held during the opening night of the SBTC Annual Meeting at Sagemont Church, church planters reported 926 people proclaimed faith in Christ and were baptized over the past calendar year.
“These are people who have gone from death to life,” said Jason Crandall, Send Network SBTC’s church planting lead, “and we get to celebrate that. That is the center of what we’re called to do.”
Thirty-seven planters were commissioned at Monday night’s service representing churches from every corner of Texas, from Abilene to College Station to San Antonio. They’re dispatched to locations big and small, from Houston and Fort Worth to Murphy and Mabank. Many of the planters stood hand-in-hand with their spouses and children.
“Church planters, you are the answer to prayers,” said Julio Arriola, director of Send Network SBTC. “ … The Lord is answering the prayers of the churches of the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention.”
‘What the Lord has called us to do’
Among those commissioned was Tim Williams, the 31-year-old pastor planter of The Vine Church in Mount Pleasant. The church is a relaunch of Gladewater Baptist Church, which had existed since 1871—about 27 years after Texas became a state.
Williams was called to pastor Gladewater Baptist Church in December 2021. At that time, the church had nine members, and leaders soon began praying and pondering its future. That future, they decided, would be most fruitful through a replant guided by Send Network SBTC. Gladewater closed in December 2023 and immediately began a nine-month preparation process of relaunching the church.
With the support of sponsor church Holly Brook Baptist Church in Hawkins and others, the relaunch happened on Sept. 24, 2024. Today, the church is multigenerational, multiethnic, and growing—with about 100 people regularly in attendance. With roughly 52% of Mount Pleasant’s population now Hispanic, the church plans to begin a Spanish-speaking service in January.
“This is what the Lord has called us to do,” Williams said. “The coolest thing for me is, throughout this replanting process we’ve had one person come by transfer of letter from another church. Everyone else has either come as a new convert or they were unchurched Christians. … It’s been really cool to see the Lord work in people’s lives.”
Dakota Adair, a 29-year-old first-time planter, stood on the stage during the commissioning service with his 3-year-old son, Elijah. Adair pastors Heirloom Church in Kyle, one of the state’s fastest-growing areas. Twenty years ago, Kyle—about 20 miles southwest of Austin—had about 8,000 residents. That number has ballooned to about 70,000 people.
With the support of its sponsor church, Epic Life New Braunfels, and many others, Heirloom Church was planted to reach Kyle’s growing and incredibly diverse population.
“Our church is very eclectic,” Adair said. “We’ve got Texas State [University] students, empty nesters, retirees … God has really just brought people together, so we’re just trying to keep things simple—love God, love people, and preach the Word.”
SBTC Executive Director Nathan Lorick told messengers he believes the convention will soon lead the way in all of North America in being “a network of churches planting new churches and seeing people won to Christ.”
“We are so excited for you,” Lorick said to the church planters before praying over them. “We are so grateful you took a step out in faith with no guarantees, trusting God to build His church, trusting God to have partners come alongside you. God has and is and will continue to bless your efforts. We’re for you. We’re with you. We’re side by side on this journey together.”
