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Amid Turmoil, Pastor Resigns at FBC Daytona Beach

Orginally published on Thursday, January 25, 2007 at 5:39 PM
by Todd Rhoades

After a few weeks of turmoil, the Rev. David Cox has resigned from First Baptist Church of Daytona Beach. In a brief but solemn meeting before church members Wednesday night, Cox quit as leader of the 4,000-member congregation. "I prayerfully offer my resignation, effective midnight tonight," he said in a prepared statement. "I love you and my family loves you. I'm forever grateful."

Cox, who succeeded the popular Bobby Welch as senior pastor less than six months ago, has been under fire for a variety of reasons, including his spending habits.

“This has been a period of extreme duress and difficulty,” he said Wednesday. “I’ve realized that any continued service here wouldn’t be productive to church growth.”

The sudden announcement came during a weeklong FAITH evangelism clinic, with visitors from across the country at the church. Cox said he informed leading church officials earlier in the evening of his plan to resign. At the end of a scheduled worship service, about 8 p.m., Welch urged members to remain for some church business.

“We need to move together forward as one church,” he said before Cox’s resignation. “This city needs to see a church that has its head and heart right.”

Read more of the story here in the Daytona Beach News Journal…

No word yet, or official statement on the FBC’s website.

Baptist Press has a transcript of Cox’s statement:

On Aug. 28, David Cox became senior pastor of First Baptist Church in Daytona Beach, Fla. On Jan. 24, he resigned.

Cox became co-pastor of First Baptist on Aug. 1, 2003, serving alongside Bobby Welch who served the church for 32 years as pastor, and who retired Aug. 28 last year. Welch is immediate past president of the Southern Baptist Convention and is pastor emeritus of First Baptist.

Addressing more than 500 people in the members-only Wednesday night meeting, Cox read from a prepared statement which he later released to Baptist Press. The statement is presented in its entirety.

“On Aug. 1, 2003, I became your co-pastor and on Aug. 28, 2006, I became your senior pastor. It has been a privilege and joy to serve you and be a part of all that Almighty God wants to do with His beautiful Bride at First Baptist Church, Daytona Beach. There have been a number of high moments and victories won and it has been especially blessing to see a number of lives truly changed and transformed by the Holy Spirit. For these experiences my family and I will be forever grateful to you.

“Over the past several weeks, First Baptist Church has undergone a season of extreme duress and difficulty. Two weeks ago tonight, at a town hall meeting to discuss impending matters [a member] said to all present at that meeting, ‘Please don’t make me choose.’ Given present dynamics and poised circumstances, I believe that any continued service and ministry here, on my part, would not be productive toward future growth and health.

“Furthermore, the personal stress and toll on my wife and family has been extreme. As is the case with each of you, my family is the most vital and important part of my life with the exception of my personal relationship to Jesus Christ my Lord.

“While it has been encouraging to be approached by so many of you regarding the starting of a new, local work in the area, I have no plans to do so. To the contrary, to do so would only cause more division and difficulty, and I am hoping that my complete removal from this church’s life will bring healing and forward progress for the glory of God. We are all praying that healing can occur and be ushered in quickly.

“As for me and my family, I have absolutely no idea before you tonight as to what I and my family will do from here - or where - or when. I only know that our God reigns and that He is faithful and true and that HE will not only give clear direction to First Baptist Church, Daytona Beach in the days just ahead, but He will also direct my path and that of my family.

“We will always thank God for these days with you and will continue to serve our Lord as you do—just from another place and perspective. The personal friendships that have been forged here with many of you are not only highly valued and precious to us, but will hopefully continue for years and years in the lifetime ahead.

“With that said, I prayerfully offer my resignation to all members and friends of First Baptist Church, Daytona Beach, Florida, effective midnight tonight and pray that the mercy and grace of our Lord Jesus Christ will fall on each of us in the days ahead. As the Apostle Paul said, and perhaps you share my heart in this matter, ‘Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press toward the goal of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus’ (Phil. 3:13-14).”

Read more here at the BP News site…

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  There are 12 Comments:

  • Posted by
    Thursday, January 25, 2007 at 7:24 PM

    I’m not really familiar with the story here, but it looks like a good thing since the pastor, so far, is not leaving with a scorched earth policy by starting a new work in the Daytona area.

    I hope he remains true to that promise.

    Here in the Houston area, a local pastor left under similar circumstances, started a new church literally down the road and it split his former church in half. Split so much that the first church was forced to merge with another area church due to financial problems.

    I just wish we’d learn to keep our fights to ourselves; no good can come when the good name of a fellowship gets dragged around in the mud with gossip and rumor.

  • Posted by Troy Gramling
    Thursday, January 25, 2007 at 10:41 PM

    I hurt for Pastor Cox; he came in and worked beside long time Pastor Bobby Welch as they worked through the transition of his retirement and then within less than 6 months he resigns. Over What? Changing the wood on the platform. Why is it that those who are followers of Christ still struggle with the same thing that the Pharasee’s did. Change.  And in Pharasitical fashion go about destroying anyone who dare lead out in transformation.
    Using a Blog to attack and hurt Pastor Cox is just NOT right.  What about his family, his wife and his kids?  Are we to believe that for 2 or 3 years Pastor Cox was able to hide these evil flaws from Pastor Welch or the congregation at First Baptist Church Daytona?  Come On, this has nothing to do with music, paint or a changed alter; this is about Power! And because Pastor Cox is not Pastor Welch his network of friends would naturally be a different group of people, and those who were in the know are no longer in the know, not because of secrecy or deception but simply because Pastor Cox is a different age, in a different life stage with different interests.  The articles that I’ve read haven’t talked about any “BIG” changes or initiatives. You might say that Pastor Cox is being attacked for being who God created him to be, by a congregation who had several years to watch, influence and even dismiss if they so chose to do before they voted to CALL him as their pastor. They called him to be their pastor, HIM, they didn’t call him to be the second coming of Pastor Welch. I was at the Southern Baptist Convention when Pastor Cox was introduced by SBC President Pastor Bobby Welch as his soon to be replacement at FBC Daytona. Pastor Cox then took the platform to preach a powerful message. Less than a year later Pastor Cox finds himself alone and hurting. I just hurt for a pastor and his family who find themselves in a place I’m sure they never thought they would be. I beg those of us who are Christ followers to pray for Pastor Cox and His family. I will also be praying for FBC Daytona that in the interim God would prepare them for the next pastor they call and that they would support and encourage him to be who God created him to be and give him the time to discover that so that they can once again be a place faith, hope and love.

  • Posted by
    Friday, January 26, 2007 at 1:17 AM

    Pastor David Cox showed me the love of Jesus 3 times in one week. I am proud of the way he has handled this. My respect and admiration of him has only increased. David and his family need our prayers.

    Mike Ellis
    FL Church For Men
    386 295 7739

  • Posted by Marty Duren
    Friday, January 26, 2007 at 7:06 AM

    We are witnessing at Daytona the results of the failure of a long tenured pastor to effectively prepare the congregation for transition.  Why was Bobby Welch still a member of FBC?  That in and of itself was setting the stage for a never ending stream of “end runs” to “see what Brother Bobby has to say about that.”

    From news reports (which are not always accurate) it seems that far too many members were tied into what was rather than what could be, and that they were far too concerned with protecting their former pastor’s legacy than buying into their new pastor’s vision.

  • Posted by
    Friday, January 26, 2007 at 10:48 AM

    I’m curious, from anyone who attends FBC Daytona - was Pastor Cox’s “vision” presented to the church before he became senior pastor?

    And as far as Bobby Welch still being a member, what else was he supposed to do?  Leave?  Just because he retired?

    -- J.R.

  • Posted by
    Friday, January 26, 2007 at 12:07 PM

    Cox has always looked to the future, “What more can be done for the Lord.” Is how he lived.
    As for Welch, yes !!!!  If he was going to resign then that is what he should have done. Get out.
    Anyone in the ministry show know, (after 32 years) that the peple were still going to look to him for guidence if he was still around.  If he wants to stay he shouldn’t have quit.

    -- M.J.

  • Posted by Randy Ehle
    Friday, January 26, 2007 at 7:11 PM

    On what Pastor Welch ought to have done:  None of us can say, because there is no right answer.  In most cases, I think, the departing pastor actually departs the church, regardless of whether he has retired or is moving to a different ministry or a different area.  There shouldn’t be a need for that, though, if all are mature and living in the unity of the Spirit.  Which of us has been at a church where that is truly the case, however? 

    Certainly there is a need for better transition planning.  It seems to me that FBC Daytona at least began the process well, by bringing in someone to work under the departing pastor before he retired.  It also is apparent that the process didn’t have its desired conclusion.  So what can we learn from it?

    One church that has done it well is First Presbyterian Church of Colorado Springs.  The retiring Senior Minister was very involved in the process of identifying his replacement, did a good job of preparing the church for his departure, and when it came time for him to retire, he participated in the installation of the new Minister.  Then he “hid” for several months - he stayed away.  He and his wife are now back and involved in the life of the church, but as parishioners; he has been very clear that he is no longer the leader, and has thrown the weight of his support behind his successor.  Understand that this is a man who is very much a micro-manager and was at the church for 30+ years - probably just the kind of person it could be hard to follow - but the transition has been essentially smooth and “successful”.

  • Posted by
    Saturday, January 27, 2007 at 10:41 AM

    In my first church, I came after a retiring pastor who remained.  It was a blessing for me as he became my best supporter.  Yet I have witnessed those times when a pastor must retire for health and yet still calls the shots behind the new pastor’s back creating a difficult ministry environment for the new pastor. 

    We live in a culture that lifts up men (and women) rather than Christ.  Some of those in ministry with large established works have humble hearts and other got that way thru sheer grit and determination (in worldly fashion).  Sometimes the difference is witnessed after their “departure”.

    I’ve known of a few churches that tried the approach of FBC, Daytona - bringing in an associate or co-pastor with the goal of installation as the senior pastor’s successor.  With one exception, they failed (for a variety of reasons, not just because the previous pastor remained).

  • Posted by
    Saturday, January 27, 2007 at 11:41 AM

    Does anyone out there know about any of the other churches that Cox pastored?  And anyway all of the commits sounds as if he was changing things behind the peoples back.  Is this not a Southern Baptist church ?  At my church, we VOTE as a church before anything is done.  Was these changes not discussed at meetings?  Or is there just a few people trying to cause trouble because they are old and don’t like change.  That’s usually the case.

    M.J.

  • Posted by
    Saturday, January 27, 2007 at 7:30 PM

    I believe (but could be wrong) that Dr. Cox’s previous pastorate was at a church in North Carolina he started himself.  I pray the Lord allows Dr. Cox to pastor a church more conducive to his style of leadership.
    FBC Daytona has had other problems in recent years.  Attendance in Sunday School had been stuck about 1,850 for the last five to seven years and has dropped to around 1,550 in the last year.  The church is trying to relocate to a new property, but needs to first sell the current building to be able to afford the move, but can’t sell it.  The congregation is about 30 percent senior adult.  I do know that Bobby Welch did make an effort to stay away from the church in recent months.

  • Posted by
    Monday, January 29, 2007 at 2:02 PM

    Once again the church has given Jesus a black eye.  When will that change?  Answer: When men and women stop being Southern Baptist and start being Christ followers.  Where in Scripture do you find the mandate to be Southern Baptist or the mandate to vote on the things of God?  It may be the history, but history also tells us this system is broken.  Far to many Godly men have been removed from office or force to resigne due to future conflict, I for one believe it makes God sick. 
    Been there, done that, got the t-shirt.
    The sad truth is when it happened to me, my pastor friends, the ones I hoped would come along side, only sat back in fear.  Fear of what you ask, fear that their members might see them aligning with other men of God to bring truth to our churches. 
    It is time for the church to change, but then again it just may be signs of the time.  Maybe the only way the church can shine for Jesus is when she is taken up to meet him?
    No matter what happens to FBC Daytona or any other church, until we train our focus on pointing others to the cross we will forever fight over carpet color, building size, ministries, staffing, pay and what we wear.  The Main thing has ceased to be the Main thing in many of the churches in our world.
    I will pray for Pastor Cox, I have known the pain he is feeling and can only hope some men of integrity will surround he and his family in the days and weeks to come.
    Oh yeah, I think we all know what happens when a long tenured pastor stays and a new pastor comes.  Do I need to remind you of FBC Dallas?  It happens all the time!

  • Posted by Daytona Beach Movers
    Thursday, March 19, 2009 at 12:07 PM

    While it’s certainly sad that he had to leave, it is good that he left on a good note. And it looks like he has a lot of support from the community, so this is the best way the situation could have been handled.

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