Jun 23, 2020
by Kevin Butler
Earlier this spring, déjà vu happened all over again.
I was asked to be Conference President.
This was after I spent a whole year assuring people at the church I serve that the presidency was a “one-and-done” assignment, that NO ONE ever serves for two years, and that by the end of this July my tasks and traveling would be done.
Then COVID-19 put a halt to all that, canceling Conference 2020. Deciding to stay on meant checking with the Lord, checking with the President-elect, checking with the church, and checking with my wife (not necessarily in that order).
Getting the green light from all involved, we moved ahead to prepare a limited virtual Conference for this year, then started making plans for 2021. Executive Director Carl Greene decided to interview me and posted the following on the SDB Blog. He said I could repeat it here:
It’s déjà vu happening all over again!
The Seventh Day Baptist General Council is pleased to announce that Rev. Kevin Butler has agreed to serve as SDB Conference President and Charlotte Chroniger as President-elect for the 2021 General Conference session. In light of the difficult decision to cancel the 2020 General Conference session, the willingness of Kevin and Charlotte to provide consistency going into the 2020-2021 ministry year is deeply appreciated—and a wonderful blessing.
As we celebrate these opportunities in the midst of change and disruption, we also want to pause and take this opportunity to reintroduce President Butler. While he is a familiar face and has been consistently engaged in the work of the Conference, there is always more we can get to know about Kevin. Hope that you enjoy his reintroduction bio that follows.
Hometown: I grew up in Vernon, NY, right next to Verona.
Favorite childhood memory: Besides all of the goodies I got being the only boy (two sisters), I really cherish having had loving, faithful, respected, church-going parents.
How you were introduced to Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord: His Word opened my eyes. After a frightening spiritual confrontation in high school, I was driven to ask questions of my mom and pastor, then searched the Bible and prayed. All those years of Sunday School classes and VBS and children’s sermons about Jesus and His free gift of salvation came together and made absolute sense! The scales fell off!
First date with Janet: We went mini-golfing and got rained out halfway through the course. On the way to “Plan B” (seeing the movie “Earthquake” at the mall) we saw a perfect double rainbow. We’ve taken that as a sign for us ever since—the rainbow, not the shaky movie theater.
What is Moxie?: Only the official drink for the state of Maine! If you enjoy a good carbonated soft drink, you probably wouldn’t like Moxie. It’s like a bitter root beer. This character (who I met in Maine) captures it so well: https://youtu.be/D6heTaAxOEY.
Memorable Conference Week Memory: So many! Sharing belly laughs and tears with friends from all over, being lovingly prayed for… Our kids still call the drive across the northern U.S. to the 1996 Conference in Washington state “the best family trip ever.”
How has God been at work in and through you amidst the disruption and disappointment of Conference Week 2020 needing to be canceled?: Lessons learned during my complete calendar overhaul and times of isolation while battling cancer in 2018 have certainly prepared me to go with the flow of this year. I am disappointed for those who were looking forward to serving the Lord in Grand Rapids, and I thank them for their willing spirits. There is a greater purpose in all this.
What is something that you are looking forward to as Conference President across the months ahead?: Continuing to encourage SDBs to fix our eyes on Jesus, and trusting His plans for what He has next for us.