Oklahoma Pastor Mike Keahbone to Be Nominated for SBC President

Oklahoma pastor Mike Keahbone has become the second person announced as a nominee for president of the Southern Baptist Convention, the largest Protestant denomination in the United States. Keahbone is senior pastor of First Baptist Church of Lawton and will be nominated at the SBC Annual Meeting, which takes place June 11-12 in Indianapolis, Indiana.

California pastor Victor Chayasirisobhon announced on Tuesday his intention to nominate Keahbone, praising the Oklahoma clergyman’s love for God and the SBC. Chayasirisobhon was quoted by The Baptist Messenger as saying that Keahbone “is the real deal, a leader who loves the Lord, loves the SBC, and strives every day to make it better.” He described Keahbone as “a son of the SBC” and said he was “more than ready” to serve as president.

Chayasirisobhon acknowledged that there were “many great pastors who may be nominated for president of the SBC,” but said he believed Keahbone was the right person for the role. He said the convention’s “unique challenges” required a candidate with “vision, boldness and clarity,” and cited Keahbone’s “extensive experience in Convention life” and his commitment to a “healthier family of churches.”

Keahbone’s wife, Jennifer, wrote on Facebook on Tuesday that the couple had prayed about whether he should accept the nomination. She said that a short time later, during her quiet time, “God spoke to my heart” and confirmed the decision to say yes. She asked friends and family to join them in prayer over the coming months.

Beyond his pulpit, Keahbone serves on the SBC Executive Committee. He is also vice chairman of the SBC’s Abuse Reform Implementation Task Force and a member of the SBC Sexual Abuse Task Force, according to Baptist Press, the convention’s official news service. Earlier, he served on the Oklahoma Baptist Board of Directors from 2015 to 2021, and was its vice president from 2017 to 2021. Keahbone, who has Comanche, Cherokee and Kiowa heritage, helped author an SBC resolution titled “On Religious Liberty, Forced Conversion, and the Federal Indian Boarding School Initiative Investigative Report,” which messengers adopted in 2022.

Keahbone is the second announced nominee. Clint Pressley, lead pastor of Hickory Grove Baptist Church in Charlotte, North Carolina, was the first person nominated for SBC president in 2024. Pastor Chris Justice of Lee Park Baptist Church in Monroe, North Carolina, announced on Jan. 21 that he would nominate Pressley, according to The Biblical Recorder. Justice said Pressley is “a man of conviction who is joyfully orthodox, devoted to the Great Commission, and committed to our cooperation as Southern Baptists.”

Source: Read the original report