DBC President Announces 2023 Theme for the Dakotas
One of the first tasks for the new president of the Dakota Baptist Convention is to decide on a theme for the coming year. The theme guides planning for the annual meeting, provides a theme for the annual Baker State Mission Offering, and gives a focus for the entire year in the network of DBC churches.
Josh Brown, pastor of Redeeming Grace Church in Rapid City, SD, was elected DBC president at the 2022 annual meeting last October. He recently announced that the theme for this year will be, “The Heart of Christ.” The focus passage is Matthew 11:28-30 where Jesus extends the invitation, “come to Me, all who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”
Brown said that he envisions this as an opportunity to rediscover, “how the heart of Christ touches the lost, the church, and the nations.”
One of the ways this theme will be highlighted will be a new monthly feature in the DBC e-newsletter called, “The Heart of Christ Across the Dakotas.” Each month a DBC pastor and a layperson from one of the Dakota churches will be invited to share how they have seen the heart of Christ “being enjoyed, experienced, or modeled in some way” where they serve.