State missionary Jay Stewart has taken a new role with GuideStone Financial Resources and will be introduced in his new position during the Nov. 16–17 Alabama Baptist State Convention annual meeting.
Stewart has served as director of the office of Cooperative Program and church financial resources at the Alabama Baptist State Board of Missions since 2022 and will remain in the Prattville/Montgomery area as he shifts from the SBOM to GuideStone in November.
He will serve as GuideStone’s state church engagement manager for Alabama. The engagement manager position is a pilot program designed to strengthen GuideStone’s ministry partnership with Southern Baptist churches, pastors and ministry leaders through dedicated, in-state engagement, according to a news release from GuideStone.
As part of the pilot initiative, the engagement managers (only two right now, Alabama and Tennessee) will serve as a consistent, local presence alongside state convention leaders, associational mission strategists and churches throughout each state.
Resourcing pastors, congregations
The new positions reflect GuideStone’s ongoing commitment to serving those who serve the Lord by helping pastors, church staff and congregations access resources that enhance financial security and resilience while strengthening the ministries they lead, the news release states.
The engagement managers will help provide education, training and support related to retirement planning, ministerial compensation, health and protection benefits, financial wellness and Mission:Dignity, while helping churches connect with the full range of GuideStone resources.
“This initiative is one way we’re seeking to serve pastors and churches even more effectively,” said Hance Dilbeck, president and CEO of GuideStone. “For more than a century, GuideStone has come alongside Southern Baptist ministers and ministries during some of life’s most important moments and challenges. These new roles allow us to be more present, more relational and more responsive as we help strengthen the financial security and resilience of those who have dedicated their lives to Kingdom service.”
Lessons learned through the initiative will help inform future opportunities to further strengthen GuideStone’s presence and service to Southern Baptists, the news release states.
“Strong churches are led by healthy pastors and ministry leaders,” Dilbeck said. “By investing in these relationships, we hope to better serve those who are faithfully serving their communities and advancing the gospel every day.”
EDITOR’S NOTE — The Alabama Baptist staff contributed to this report.
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