John Greening to retire after two decades of faithful service

Dr. John R. Greening and the Council of Eighteen announced at the recently concluded 2017 GARBC Conference in North East, Maryland, Greening’s plans to retire from the office of national representative of the GARBC.

For several months, Greening and the council have been discussing the coming leadership transition. The council has formed a National Representative Search Committee to lead the council and the GARBC in the selection of the next national representative.

Greening will serve as national representative at least through the 2018 GARBC Conference. The search committee, by God’s direction and timing, desires to present a candidate to the GARBC at the 2018 GARBC Conference.

This search process is contingent upon God making apparent His will to the search committee, the Council of Eighteen, and the messengers of the GARBC. The writer of wisdom declared, “The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the Lord” (Prov. 16:33). Plans are being made and pursued with clear dependence upon God for discernment, wisdom, and responsiveness to His will.

In June 2016, the Council of Eighteen established a procedure to form the National Representative Search Committee. This procedure was then implemented at the council’s November 2016 meeting in Arlington Heights, Illinois. The council chose Mike Augsburger (West Des Moines, Iowa), Tim Capon (Ankeny, Iowa), Duke Crawford (Toledo, Ohio), Will Hatfield (Ames, Iowa), and David E. Strope (Ankeny, Iowa) to serve on the search committee. The council subsequently selected David E. Strope to serve as the search committee’s chairman.

This past winter and spring, the search committee met to establish a national representative ministry profile and to determine the committee’s search procedures.

On April 5, 2017, John Greening and David Strope together communicated to the GARBC Resource Center staff Greening’s retirement plans.

The National Representative Search Committee will communicate regularly and as widely as possible with the churches and pastors of the GARBC. Communication will occur via e-mail, mail, the GARBC’s E-Info digital newsletter, the GARBC website, and the Baptist Bulletin.

National Representative Search Committee Time Line

  • June 28, 2017: Announcement of John Greening’s retirement plans at the GARBC Conference business meeting
  • July 1, 2017: Communication of John Greening’s retirement and the national representative search process via the Baptist Bulletin, GARBC website, electronic and hardcopy communication with each church of the GARBC, E-Info, and other means
  • July 1, 2017 to October 1, 2017: Search committee receives recommendations of candidates for the national representative office and begins investigation and confidential inquiry of candidates
  • October 1, 2017: Deadline for submission of candidates
  • October 1, 2017 to Spring 2018: Search committee screens, interviews, and procures character references of candidates and selects one candidate to be presented to the Council of Eighteen
  • Winter 2018 to Spring 2018: Entire Council of Eighteen interviews individual candidate and votes to make a formal recommendation of this individual to the messengers of the GARBC
  • June 2018: Local church messengers attending the 2018 GARBC Conference receive the Council of Eighteen’s recommendation and vote on the national representative candidate