ALPHARETTA, GA (BP)–The term ‘On Mission’ is about to take on new meaning for Christian educators across the Southern Baptist Convention as veteran educator Bill Taylor joins the staff of the North American Mission Board.
Taylor “brings a new dimension to missions that the SBC has not previously seen,” NAMB President Robert E. (Bob) Reccord said in announcing Taylor’s appointment as executive assistant to the president and director of Christian Educators On Mission.
“In this new role Dr. Taylor will help us enlist and involve Christian educators in diverse ministries such as disaster relief, Strategic Focus Cities and the rebuilding of ministries in churches devastated by the recent storms such as Katrina.”
Reccord said Taylor also “will be a vital bridge as Dr. Thom Rainer, president of LifeWay Christian Resources, and I discover new and strategic ways to work more closely together to benefit the end user, the local SBC church.”
Rainer said, “Few people today know as much about the North American church as Bill Taylor. His strategic mind, his vast experience and his unabated passion for the local church is a gift to Southern Baptists and the greater evangelical world.”
Taylor retired last year from LifeWay after serving 11 years as director of the Sunday School division and director of network partnerships.
The potential of Christian educators to impact North America is “unbelievable,” Taylor said.
“The natural bent of the CE [Christian educator] is to serve and engage believers in active participation,” Taylor said. “I believe in the objectives of the North American Mission Board and LifeWay Christian Resources, and I look forward to working with Christian educators to empower thousands of leaders to be On Mission.”
Taylor’s new responsibilities will include leading a national task force of Christian educators who will enlist other Christian educators to assist in reshaping educational ministries.
“Partnering with states and associations, these enlisted CEs will help rebuild the missional leadership base and assist the affected churches to identify and engage their membership in On Mission ministries,” Taylor said.
Taylor already has started working with the leadership of NAMB’s Strategic Focus Cities to enlist ministers of education in cities such as Cleveland, Baltimore and Vancouver. And he is working with NAMB’s new director of workplace initiatives, David Powell.
Prior to Taylor’s service at LifeWay, he served at Prestonwood Baptist Church in Dallas, North Phoenix Baptist Church in Arizona and University Baptist Church in Coral Gables, Fla. During his tenure at Prestonwood, the Sunday School was recognized as the fastest-growing Sunday School in the Southern Baptist Convention for several years. He has also served as president of the Southern Baptist Religious Education Association and the Metro Religious Educators group.
Since his retirement from LifeWay, Taylor has served as a consultant to First Baptist Church in Dallas, Bellevue Baptist Church in suburban Memphis and the First Baptist Church in Jacksonville, Fla.
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