A committee formed to seek the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention’s (SBTC) next executive director has unanimously agreed on a candidate. Nathan Lorick, current executive director of the Colorado Baptist General Convention, will be considered during a called board meeting Feb. 21 in Grapevine. Lorick, 39, has served the Colorado convention since 2017 and was evangelism director for the SBTC, from 2012-17, after pastoring two churches in Texas.

The committee was formed during the Nov. 11, 2020, executive board meeting, after current Executive Director Jim Richards announced to the board that he was stepping down in 2021. Richards is the founding leader of the convention, beginning his tenure in 1998. The committee went to work immediately.

The committee chairman credited the members’ commitment to prayer, as well as the prayers of those across the convention, for clear leadership from God and the unity the search committee experienced.

“I’ve been on several search committees, and often it takes quite a bit of time to narrow to one candidate,” said Mark Hogan, chairman of both the SBTC executive board and the search team. “However, after weeks of prayer, and the interview process, we were impressed that God laid the same candidate on each of our hearts. In this instance, we were completely convinced this candidate was uniquely qualified. We are very excited about the possibility of Nathan leading SBTC into the future.”

“Walking through this process has been an extremely humbling experience,” Lorick said. “The possibility that God could be calling me to follow in the footsteps of Dr. Jim Richards, a man of unparalleled leadership and integrity, is truly an honor.”

Richards said of Lorick’s recommendation to succeed him, “Nathan did a phenomenal job for SBTC as our evangelism director for nearly five years. I have been excited to see his success leading Colorado Baptists since then. If the board elects him executive director of the SBTC, it will be my greatest pleasure to walk alongside him for the remainder of this year. I think he’d be a great leader for our convention.”

Lorick is married to Jenna, and they have four children. He earned Master of Divinity and Doctor of Ministry degrees from Liberty University and a Bachelor of Arts from East Texas Baptist University.

According to a succession plan approved by the executive board last year, Lorick, if elected, will serve under Richards as executive director-elect for three months and then become executive director, with Richards continuing in an advisory role through the remainder of 2021.

(EDITOR’S NOTE – Gary Ledbetter is editor of the Southern Baptist TEXAN.)