SPRINGFIELD, Mo.—A Missouri pastor will nominate Doug Munton, senior pastor of First Baptist Church in O’Fallon, Ill., for first vice president at the 2016 Southern Baptist Convention annual meeting June 14-15 in St. Louis.
John Marshall, pastor of Second Baptist Church in Springfield, Mo., will nominate Munton, who has led the St. Louis-area congregation more than 20 years.
Doug Munton Previously, Munton served two Denton-area congregations, as pastor of First Baptist Church in Corinth and as minister of youth at Calvary Baptist Church in Pilot Point.
“Doug cares about souls. He has demonstrated a constant passion for winning the lost to Christ,” Marshall said. “The St. Louis metroplex is a tough place to do the Lord’s work, but Doug has led his congregation there effectively. He has been a longtime role model for those of us who serve in the Midwest.”
In Munton’s tenure at O’Fallon, the church has grown from 550 to more than 1,600 people in average attendance, and he has baptized about 2,000 people.
Munton led the church to baptize 69 people last year and 173 the year before. The congregation gives about 8 percent of budget receipts to the Cooperative Program unified missions budget.
“I want to be a great encourager to our convention in the area of missions and evangelism,” Munton said. “Since my first international mission trip, God has stirred my heart for the nations. And with a daughter and her family serving as career missionaries with the International Mission Board in Madagascar, the issue is even more personal. But I also want to see us with a passion to see our friends and neighbors and classmates come to know the Lord right here in our own nation.”
Munton added he wants to encourage church leaders of varied church sizes and ethnicities.
“I want to see a continued move in our convention towards racial diversity and unity,” he said. “I want to encourage our churches to participate in missions through support of the Cooperative Program. I hope to encourage prayer for a spiritual awakening in our convention and nation.”
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Munton served as president of the Illinois Baptist State Association two years and serves on the Committee on Committees for the Southern Baptist Convention.
“I am excited to hear that Doug will be nominated for this national role, after experiencing his strong leadership here in Illinois as our state convention president and as longtime pastor of one of our leading churches,” said Nate Adams, Illinois Baptist State Association executive director. “Doug has all the qualities I would hope for in SBC leadership. He is a conservative, cooperative, humble, thoughtful, missions-hearted pastor who will lead both as statesman and by personal example.”
Munton, 56, is a graduate of Wheaton College and earned a master of divinity degree and doctorate from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. He has taught preaching and evangelism as an adjunct professor at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, Liberty Seminary and Criswell College.
He is the author of four books. The most recent is 30 Days to Acts: A Devotional Commentary.
His wife, Vickie, is president of the SBC Ministers’ Wives Conference this year. The Muntons have four adult children and soon will have their seventh grandchild.
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