The position was previously held by Jack Snell, who died in October after a six-month battle with pancreatic cancer.

Smith currently lives in Berlin and serves as the CBF's associate coordinator for mission teams. As director of field team ministries, he will supervise CBF global-missions field personnel and support mission teams.

His new responsibilities will begin Oct. 1, and he will be based out of the CBF Resource Center in Atlanta.

“Jim Smith brings a wealth of experience to this significant position, including a long career in mission engagement in Europe,” said Rob Nash, the CBF's coordinator for global missions. “The Smiths are held in high esteem by European Baptists, who have often spoken to me of their appreciation for the contribution the Smiths have made in that part of the world.”

Smith's wife, Becky, will continue to serve the CBF as an area coordinator. In their current positions, the couple has provided guidance to the Fellowship's field personnel in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The Smiths have served as liaisons between field personnel and the CBF national office, and helped connect missionaries with local churches and other partners. Before beginning work with the CBF in 1993, the Smiths' missions service included working in Germany and Austria.

“I am honored to be asked to do this job,” Jim Smith said. “It is a challenge to be an advocate for field personnel spread around the globe and working in difficult places. I am humbled at the sacrifices made by our field personnel and hope to support their efforts in every possible way. CBF's ethos of collaboration and partnership with others in carrying out the Great Commission requires our people to juggle many roles.”

A native of Martinsville, Smith is a graduate of Averett University in Danville and Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky.

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