Ouachita held the 40th Annual Arkansas Baptist Associational Missionaries Banquet in Walker Conference Center on Feb. 22, hosted by President Dr. Rex Horne and his wife Becky. Established in 1972 by then-President Dr. Daniel R. Grant and then-Vice President for Development Dr. Ben Elrod, Ouachita holds the banquet to show appreciation for the work of associational missionaries who serve in the 42 regional associations of the Arkansas Baptist State Convention.
“The first banquet was begun when the forerunner of the Pruett School, the department of religion, had a meeting where the associational missionaries were invited to come, and they were promoting the beginning of a pastor’s conference,” said Phil Hardin, assistant to the president for administration. “The Pruett School puts on a pastors conference every September. And when that was being initiated and the associational missionaries were being told about it, they were invited to campus to learn about it. In combination with that meeting, Dr Grant and Dr. Elrod sponsored the dinner at which time they made this first award and began the program in 1972.”
There are 42 of these associations in the state of Arkansas, and an association missionary is hired to help guide and lead their efforts. They are regional groupings of churches who cooperate together to do local missions in their area and are affiliated with the Arkansas Baptist State Convention. They will often sponsor ministries in their area for the local churches to be involved in collaborative efforts to host backyard bible clubs, vacation bible schools, disaster relief programs, area wide revivals and training for people in those churches.
“The purpose of having the banquet is for Ouachita to tell these people that we appreciate what they’re doing,” Hardin said “Their work with the associations, and by extension all the churches of the Arkansas Baptist State Convention, strengthens their work and their ministries. One feature of the banquet is to present an award to one of the associational missionaries who has been identified as doing outstanding and exemplary work in recent years. This is our way of saying thank you.”
At the banquet, Horne spoke to the group of associational missionaries and commended them for their efforts for the state of Arkansas.
“This is such an important time to be serving the Lord in the way that he calls us and directs us,” he said. “And he has called all of you [associational missionaries] to have a particular ministry and a close relationship with the local church. There is no organization in God’s Kingdom more important than the local church, and you’ve had the opportunity to deal with a number of [them]. So, the responsibility that you bear is a burden that you share that not many people can understand, so we thank you for the work that you do, and we commend you for continued service in God’s kingdom.”
This year’s Associational Missionary Award went to Gary Glasgow, the associational missionary at the Liberty Baptist Association. Glasgow has served as associate pastor for Immanuel Baptist Church in El Dorado. He has served as minister of education and outreach for the Central Baptist Church in Magnolia, Ark., as well as the administrative associate pastor and minister of education at First Baptist Church in Collierville, Tenn. In 2000, the Liberty Baptist Association called him to serve as associational missionary. Glasgow’s work for the Liberty Baptist Association includes having developed a strategic planning process that led to the strengthening of existing ministries in addition to new ones. He served as a key contact with Project South and a joint venture with Arkansas Veterans Affairs to help reach out to veterans. The Liberty Ministry Center has also expanded his work in providing clothing, food and financial assistance for low-income families.
“It is an honor for me on behalf of all the associational missionaries in Arkansas to receive this reward,” he said. “I think I can speak for all of us in saying that we are so thankful to have a school like Ouachita Baptist University. It’s a privilege that we have this relationship and partnership with such a fine Christian institution, and what a blessing it is to serve in this state as associational missionaries.”
The banquet also featured musical performances by freshman musical theater major Todd McNeel, senior vocal performance major John Tneoh, sophomore vocal performance major Victoria Mantooth and junior music major Alyssa Reynolds. Dr. Danny Hays, dean of the Pruett School of Christian Studies, spoke about Ouachita’s efforts to empower students who will go on to be future church leaders and ministers. A number of seniors from the Pruett School were also present. Grant, who served as president of Ouachita from 1970 to 1988 and co-founded of the Arkansas Baptist Associational Missionaries Banquet, also spoke at the event.
Picture by Heather Ellis.
Caption: Dr. Daniel Grant, president of Ouachita from 1970 to 1988, speaks at the Arkansas Baptist Associational Missionaries Banquet.
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