John Meador
John Meador, pastor of the Dallas-area First Baptist Church in Euless, Texas, and former pastor at Woodland Park Baptist Church in Chattanooga, will be nominated for president of the Southern Baptist Convention Pastors’ Conference, according to an announcement by Tennessee pastor Steve Gaines.
Mr. Gaines, pastor of Bellevue Baptist Church in Memphis, stated in a May 5 announcement to Baptist Press: “John Meador is a man of God and a very capable leader in his church, his state and in the SBC. In this crucial day when our Southern Baptist churches are seeking to be a catalyst for revival in America, John Meador brings seasoned leadership as a veteran pastor. He has led the historic First Baptist Church, Euless, Texas, to be an epicenter for prayer, personal evangelism and spiritual awakening. He loves the Lord, he loves people and he loves Southern Baptists.”
Mr. Gaines said Mr. Meador will lead pastors from various streams of Southern Baptist life to unite for the cause of evangelism.
Mr. Meador “is rock-solid in his commitment to keeping ‘the main thing’ of evangelism/revival as the focal point of his tenure as president of the SBC Pastors’ Conference,” Mr. Gaines said. “Our culture is running away from Jesus and is in a state of moral and spiritual decline. Mr. Meador will help lead Southern Baptists to engage our culture with the gospel of Jesus and will follow SBC President Ronnie Floyd’s lead by focusing on spiritual awakening and fulfilling the Great Commission.”
The Pastors’ Conference, which features messages from key leaders and inspirational music and worship, will be June 14-15 in the Greater Columbus Convention Center preceding the SBC’s June 16-17 annual meeting there.
St. Louis will be the site of next year’s Pastors’ Conference and SBC annual meeting.
Mr. Meador, who preached the convention sermon at the 2014 SBC annual meeting, has pastored First Baptist since 2006, leading the congregation to “launch a gospel-centered compassion organization that has become a model across the nation for partnering with businesses, schools and churches in meeting the community’s needs,” Mr. Gaines said. That ministry, known as the 6 Stones Mission Network, recently helped renovate nearly 400 homes.
Over the past 18 months, an evangelism training program at First Baptist known as “Can We Talk?” has resulted in 500 adults sharing the gospel with nearly 2,500 people.
A childhood illness left Mr. Meador 80 percent deaf, and his hearing loss has since increased to 95 percent. Though he cannot hear his own voice, he preaches to thousands each week, according to his website.
Mr. Meador is a trustee for the International Mission Board and previously served as chairman of the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention’s executive board.
Before serving in Euless, Mr. Meador pastored churches in Oklahoma, Texas and Tennessee, most recently serving at Woodland Park Baptist Church in Chattanooga.
Mr. Meador earned an undergraduate degree from Oklahoma Baptist University in Shawnee, Okla., and a master of divinity from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas.
Mr. Meador and his wife Kim have six children.
“One of the most appealing aspects about John Meador,” Mr. Gaines said, “is his love and respect for all Southern Baptists.”