NASHVILLE (BP) – It may surprise Southern Baptists to learn that Lifeway’s new president went to maximum-security prison at 15 years old.
Ryan Blackwell wasn’t on the wrong side of the law, though he was there as a matter of conviction. Blackwell had become a Christian two years earlier, and the trip to the prison with his youth pastor was one of several ministry opportunities he received early in his faith walk.
On the way to the prison, Blackwell learned he was going to preach. With his adrenaline pumping, Blackwell boat-raced through a sermon in six minutes to a “lively” audience of about 400 men, he told Lawrence Smith in an episode of Better Together.
He also learned the importance of being faithful, as two gave their hearts to Christ.
“It was not a good sermon. But I saw God use that,” Blackwell said. “From that moment on, I was hooked. I wanted to do with my whole life this work of sharing the Gospel.”
That included an interim pastorate at 23 while attending Golden Gate (now Gateway) Seminary, and later, a revitalization effort at First Baptist San Francisco. His election as Lifeway’s 11th president in April came after serving as executive pastor and teaching pastor at Cross Church in Springdale, Ark.
Blackwell, 42, says those experiences gave him a love for the local church and a desire to make Lifeway a resource destination for pastors and church leaders.
“Looking back, I see God preparing me to have a heart that loves His church in all of its different forms, understands pastors who don’t have a staff and understands pastors who have a lot of staff. God is using all of that to help me be prepared to serve in an organization that doesn’t just serve one kind of church,” he said.
Blackwell’s near-decade of service in San Francisco taught him the importance of personal revitalization.
“[That time] taught me so much about what it looks like to depend daily on the work of the Holy Spirit to do the work,” he said. “There was nothing that I could do to grow a church in San Francisco, but I could sow seeds and then depend on his spirit to grow them.
“At about year four, we began to see momentum [from] all those seeds. God began to produce fruit, and we saw an amazing turnaround for that church; 40 different nations represented [and] a super-healthy body right in the middle of San Francisco.”
God was preparing him for his current role, he believes, including holding the line on the integrity of resources available through Lifeway and maintaining a “stewardship of responsibility.”
“I’m standing on the shoulders of great leaders who have gone before me to help Lifeway serve the church with all its heart. … We’re [also] in a season in the convention and the world where I have to ensure there is zero theological drift in Lifeway. I really believe that trust is the No. 1 commodity that Lifeway has.”
The Southern Baptist Convention’s diversity – whether in terms of church size, ministry setting, ethnicity, etc. – is rightly celebrated, but nevertheless includes the baked-in challenge of ministering to a group with a diverse set of opinions. But there is a common denominator.
“We want to help create a pathway for discipleship,” said Blackwell. “… We really believe that churches flourish as disciples are being formed.”
Watch the full video below.
