Rev. Rob White began his duties as church planter strategist focusing on partnership development with the South Carolina Baptist Convention on Jun. 30.

A pastor for 28 years, including at Northside Church in Anderson, White has most recently served as a pastor in Knoxville, TN.  As church planter strategist with the convention, White will work with existing South Carolina Baptist churches as they seek to multiply across the state.

“South Carolina is the first among Southern Baptist state conventions to have someone specially assigned to work with existing churches in church planting.  A critical aspect of our strategy is to encourage churches to plant churches.  We have made several significant changes that reflects that value.  We need 1,000 of our existing churches to make a commitment to plant new churches,” said Dino Senesi, director of Church  Multiplication, SCBC. 

“American history, especially in the past forty years, has revealed that when denominations slack off from the starting of new churches, those denominations soon fade and decline.  We refuse to do that.  A growing and shifting population in South Carolina dictates that the South Carolina Baptist Convention promote and strategize vigorously the expansion of new congregations.  We have got a big job to do.  Rob White, a proven and experienced veteran, is coming to help us.  I predict he will be outstanding,” said Dr. Carlisle Driggers, executive director-treasurer, SCBC.

For his part, White said that innovation is key to seeing more people come to know Christ through church planting and multiplication.  “In order to reach the community, we must be innovative and radical.  The key will be to help churches to dream again and catch a spark of excitement to start new churches,” he said.

White said South Carolina can be a leader in church building and Kingdom ministry, beyond those goals set through Empowering Kingdom Growth 2002-2007. 

“The goal [to see 600 new churches by November 2007] is too big for any one person – but God can do it.  It is going to take a strong partnership,” White said, adding that he wants to help bridge the gap between existing healthy churches and new ones.