Dear Baptist Home Family,
The Pastor Search Committee is pleased to inform our church
family that we are in unanimous agreement to recommend that
Dr. Lonnie “Lon” Chenowith be called to be the next pastor of
Baptist Home Church.
Dr. Chenowith is fifty-one years old and has twenty-seven years
pastoral experience. He received a Master of Divinity degree from
Southwestern Seminary and a Doctor of Ministry degree from
Luther Rice Seminary.
Dr. Chenowith was licensed to preach in November 1976 and
ordained in April of 1984. He served as church planter/pastor of
First Baptist Church in West Pembroke Pines, FL from 1983 –
1988; as pastor of Mineral Wells Baptist Fellowship in Mineral
Wells, WV from 1988-1994; and as pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Oneida, TN from 1994-2008. He left Bethlehem in 2008 feeling that God was calling him to another ministry. Waiting for God to give him direction, he served on the staff of Ancient City Baptist Church in St. Augustine, FL from 2008-2009. Since that time to the present, Dr. Chenowith has served as interim senior pastor of Grace Pointe Baptist Church in St. Augustine, FL while waiting for Baptist Home to make a decision on calling a pastor.
Dr. Chenowith has been active in the Southern Baptist Convention, State Conventions and local Baptist Associations. He has served on committees of the Southern Baptist Convention and in many positions in local Baptist Associations including Mission Coordinator, Evangelism Director and Moderator. He has written Sunday School lessons for the Tennessee Baptist Convention, has conducted revivals in nineteen cities in nine states, and been on twenty-eight international mission trips.
Dr. Chenowith and his wife, Kay, have been married for twenty-eight years. Kay has a Bachelor of Science degree from Georgia Southern University and has earned twenty-eight hours toward a Master in Divinity degree from Southwestern Seminary. She has led ladies’ Bible studies and conferences, directed National Days of Prayer, and coordinated youth mission trips.
An avid outdoorsman, Dr. Chenowith hiked the length of the Appalachian Trail over a period of fourteen years. He is the author of Five Million Steps, a book which tells of how he felt God’s presence along the way, teaching him great lessons of faith and perseverance.
Dr. Chenowith and Kay have three children: Malachi, 27, Nathanael, 24, and Karis, 21. Malachi has completed a year of studies in the Explore Outdoor Program with Prairie Bible College in Alberta, Canada. He has served as a summer and semester missionary in South East Asia with the International Mission Board and is a US Army veteran having served thirteen months in Iraq. Malachi and his wife, Chrystal, reside in Chambly, Quebec. Nathanael is a graduate of Palm Beach Atlantic University in Christian Leadership. He is a licensed pilot and also serves in youth ministry at Grace Fellowship Church in West Palm Beach, FL. Nathanael has served in international missions in South America and Asia and plans to continue his mission work in the future. Karis has been on four mission trips to South Africa and most recently, has served in a mission outreach program in Northern Ireland. She attended North Greenville University in Tigerville, SC while working part time and plans to continue her education in the near future. Karis currently lives with her parents anticipating their move to a new ministry.
Dr. Chenowith shared with the search committee that since first learning of the ministries and programs of our church he felt it would be an answer to prayer if God called him to serve at Baptist Home. In his own words, he was “humbled and broken” when he was contacted by the committee about the possibility of him coming to serve as senior pastor.
The Baptist Home Family will have an opportunity to meet the Chenowiths on Saturday evening, July 24, from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at a reception hosted by the Pastor Search Committee in the Family Life Center. On Sunday, July 25, Dr. Chenowith will speak during a joint morning worship service to be held in the Family Life Center starting at 10:30 a.m. The church will be called into special conference following the morning worship service to vote on extending a call to Dr. Chenowith.
The terms of call, including the compensation package and the terms of employment, will be made available to the church membership prior to Dr. Chenowith’s visit. The vote to extend the call will include the terms of call as agreed upon by the Pastor Search Committee and Dr. Chenowith.
We are grateful for the faithful prayers and words of encouragement for our committee through this process. Please continue to be in prayer for our church, Dr. Chenowith and his family, and for God’s continued leadership in the life of Baptist Home Church.
Sincerely,
Baptist Home Church Pastor Search Committee
Ron McGrady, Chairman
Tommy Burchette
Dana Burns
Ben Harbour
Eric Huffman
Cathy Lockhart
Jill Rogers
