Coffee Talk
By Ben Ebner and Tim Keesee
Editor’s Note: On August 26, 2023, the Board of Directors elected Dr. Ben Ebner as the next Executive Director of Frontline Missions International beginning January 1, 2024. As friends of Frontline, it is important to us that you know about this transition. Ben and I wish we could have a coffee talk with each of you and tell you of God’s guiding hand in all of this, but since we can’t, we want to share some of the backstory from each of our perspectives. As seems fitting, it all began over a cup of coffee. . .
Ben
On July 27, 2014, I got a text from Tim. I had just come through a difficult stretch of ministry at a church where I was on staff. This particular Sunday had been especially hard, and just before 11pm that night I got Tim’s text asking if I could meet him the next day. We met at Leopard Forest coffee shop in Travelers Rest, and Tim told me about an idea he had for a missions internship program. He asked if I would be interested in joining the Frontline team to create and lead this program. I told him I would pray about it and get back to him—and here we are nine years later.
Morocco, 2016
Since that meeting, Tim and I have spoken nearly every day and our offices have shared a door. We’ve traveled thousands and thousands of miles together, and over these nine years Tim has been a friend to me. He has shown me what Frontline is about and the places where Frontline works. Tim has also allowed me to lead more of FMI’s work and develop my own relationships with our team members. In the last few years, as Tim has dealt with sickness, he used much of his limited strength to talk to me and encourage me. Of all the incredible things God has done at Frontline in these years, one that I’m constantly thankful for is Tim’s friendship.
One thing I’ve learned over the years is that Frontline is more than missionaries, or interns, or Strategic Partners, or churches, or donors—Frontline is an idea. And for more than thirty years Frontline has been consumed with this one idea: there are places in this world where people can live their entire lives and never meet a Christian, see a Bible, or have access to a church. This idea is bigger than just the fact that these kinds of places exist—it’s that someone needs to go to these places to share the Good News of Jesus. This is the idea that Frontline is dedicated to, and this is the legacy that Tim and so many others have guarded and preserved and passed along. This is the legacy that I’m absolutely committed to continuing.
On July 27, 2014, I had no idea what God would do over the next nine years. At the time I was almost ready to turn in my dissertation and graduate with a doctorate in music from USC. So, in many ways, coming to work at Frontline didn’t really make any sense. But over these years as I have seen the Gospel advance in the world’s difficult places, this became the idea that I want to give my life to.
Tim
Like Ben, I could not have imagined all that would come of our God-appointed coffee talk back in the summer of 2014. I quickly saw in Ben a man who worked hard and led well in whatever he undertook—whether at Frontline, his church, or his home. By the way, Ben has been married to Sarah for twenty-one years, and they have two delightful daughters, Gracen and Stella.
Ben and Tim with a friend in Iraq, 2017
As I saw Ben’s capacity, I gave him more responsibility, and I have never asked Ben to take on a task that he did not do well. Besides building out and directing our Frontline Experience (FX) internship program, Ben also oversaw the construction of The Refuge in 2015/16, organized our First Field Team Retreat in Chiang Mai, Thailand in 2019, and has traveled for Frontline to such far-flung places as Iraq, Mauritania, China, and the islands of Sumatra. Ben has traveled to nearly thirty countries for Frontline, spending extended time with our families on the field, building ties with our Strategic Partners, and providing me with insight into new Gospel initiatives.
When my cancer diagnoses came in 2019 and 2021, with all the oncologist appointments, radiation, and chemo, there were many things that weighed on my mind as I considered the finish line of my race. But during that time, one thing I never worried about was “What will become of Frontline?” Even writing that sentence now brings me great joy. By God’s kindness, I have a trusted and capable colleague who is proven and fully equipped to lead Frontline. And Ben and I have had the backing of an outstanding board of directors led by Bert Arrowood, Frontline’s board chair.
I had actually been laying the groundwork for this transition long before my cancer diagnoses because I’ve seen too many organizations—especially Christian ministries—rise and fall with their founder. So, I’ve always been committed to working toward what I call my dispensability. Some years ago, I read a biography entitled Washington: The Indispensable Man. It’s a perfectly apt description for George Washington, but very few people can put that descriptor after their name—including me! However, dispensability doesn’t mean uselessness, and I wanted to be part of setting the future course of Frontline and serve and support the next generations of leaders.
FMI Board of Directors
The Lord has graciously allowed me to have full participation in this transition. After months of prayer and pursuing wise counsel, the executive committee unanimously recommended to the full board at our August meeting that Ben Ebner be named the next Executive Director of Frontline, and the board unanimously approved the motion.
I plan to continue serving at Frontline in many of the same ways I am now—writing, traveling, preaching, investing in our teams here and on the field, and continuing to serve on the Executive Committee of the board. Debbie will continue to work alongside me as my assistant as she has done since we ran the first “office” on our kitchen table, which seems like a lifetime ago.
Pray for all of us in this transition and rejoice with us in all that God has done and will continue to do. Like David, we are confident in the care of our God:
The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me; your steadfast love, O Lord, endures forever. Do not forsake the work of your hands” Psalm 138:8.