We Are A Part of Something Bigger...#GA2017

I just got back from General Assembly.  This event takes place every four years in the Church of the Nazarene and it is when delegates come together from all parts of the globe (we are in 162 countries and minister in more than 200 languages worldwide) and do the business of the church. During these days, changes are adopted to our Manual (this contains the bylaws of the Church of the Nazarene) as well as looking at policies and procedures for the global church.  I talked quite a bit about what goes on at General Assembly in a former post so I won't spend a lot of time now, but if you want to learn more about what General Assembly is, you can read about it here. Today, I want to share a couple of highlights from General Assembly 2017.

First, there were amazing worship services.  It is hard to put into words what it is like to worship with so many brothers and sisters from around the globe, but it is amazing.  Since I am trying to learn Korean, I decided to get a translator headset so I could listen to the services and the some of the business meetings in that language.  That was an experience all its own.  I don't know enough to be able to follow along solely in Korean, but it was cool when I would be able to pick out the things I did know.  On Saturday night, they brought out on stage dozens of people to sing "The Revelation Song," and it was broken up into multiple languages.  What a moving experience that was.  You can watch the video below if you'd like to see it.  Wow!  In fact, you can find videos of all the services as well as this week's business meetings on YouTube.

 

Second, not only did I get to meet and/or catch up with friends from all over the USA, I was blessed to meet and get to know Nazarene Brothers and Sisters from all over the world. I met an amazing group from Nassau, Bahamas during the first couple days of Assembly and then was blessed to see them several times throughout the event. They brightened my day each time we got to see each other. Then another day, I met two women from Taiwan, one of which was the pastor of her church and had been pastoring there for many years.  What an inspiration she was.  I met the District Superintendent's wife from one of our India Districts as well as the General Assembly Delegate from another India District, both of which were amazing women of God.  I was blessed to chat several times with the fantastic woman, named Sun, who was manning the booth for Korea Nazarene University and I got to see the show their Tae Kwon Do Team put on.  It was jaw dropping.   It was great to get to catch up with the people Mom and Dad had worked with at Africa Nazarene University as well.  There were literally people to meet from all parts of the world and I tried to meet as many as I had the opportunity to do so.

Finally, I was there to witness the election of our two newest General Superintendents.  For those not familiar with the Church of the Nazarene, we have six General Superintendents who lead our church globally.  It is a huge job and not one that any of us take lightly.  They have the responsibility of chairing every District Assembly worldwide, ordaining all ministerial candidates each year from all parts of the world, as well as many many more duties.  This year, we elected Dr. Filimeo Chambo from our Africa Region and Dr. Carla Sunberg who has been the president of Nazarene Theological Seminary.  Dr. Chambo's election brings our Board of General Superintendents to three from within the US and three from outside the US and Dr. Sunberg in our second ever woman to be elected a GS.  It was an incredible honor to see these two wonderful leaders in our church elected to our highest office. 

General Assembly reminds me once again that we are bigger than just our local church.  Bigger than our Districts and even bigger than our countries.  We are a part of a global team all working together to reach the world for Jesus.  And when we include our brothers and sisters from other denominations that team just gets bigger.  It's important to remember that we are not alone.  It's important to remember that there are others working for the Kingdom in places we may never get to visit ourselves.  And it's important to remember that we are indeed all ONE team, pursuing ONE goal and that is the share CHRIST with the world.  I'm honored to be a small part of this global team.  

General Assembly 2017...

It happens every four years and it's my favorite event in the life of my denomination.  It's General Assembly and it is happening later this month in Indianapolis, Indiana.  What makes it so special?  Well, there are many things that I look forward to at General Assembly, but here are my top 3 reasons why I love it:

1) It is very much a family reunion...
I grew up in the Church of the Nazarene.  In fact, I joined the church when I was about 10 years old.  I have been on staff in 6 churches across three states, been the Preacher's Kid in 11 churches (ranging from infancy-now) since my Dad is a Pastor, went to a Nazarene University ("On a hill stands old Trevecca..."), and the list goes on.  To say I have Nazarene friends around the world is not an understatement and the only time I have opportunity to catch up with those amazing people is when we all come together for General Assembly.  It's a time to see how God is working in the lives of people across the world.  And there will literally be people there from all parts of the world (except perhaps Antarctica...I don't believe we have any churches on that continent...yet. 😁)  At Assembly we get to encourage and learn from each other in ways that simply are not possible at any other time.  It's amazing.  This year, I gave myself a challenge and I have been learning Korean.  I'm not even remotely fluent, but I can hold a short conversation pretty well now. I'm excited to be able to greet the participants who speak Korean in their own language this time.  Why?  Well, why not?  They are a part of my global family and not many of us in the States had the opportunity to learn any Asian languages in school, so now as an adult, I'm trying to learn.  Eventually, I plan to learn a little Japanese, Chinese, and even Vietnamese as well and then at the next General Assembly I'll be able to greet them properly too...but this time...I'm focused on Korean. We shall see how well I do. 

2) We get great training for ministry...
There are tons of workshops covering every area of ministry throughout the first few days of General Assembly.  This free training is available to anyone who wants to attend and is an amazing resource for those who want to grow in their faith, add to their ministerial toolkit, or simply learn more about the Kingdom of God.  Plus there is a large exhibit hall where you can get more information about ministry tools, learn about the work God is doing around the globe, check out the large number of Nazarene Educational Institutions that are represented, or even shop for a souvenir.  There really is something for everyone.

3) The Worship Services...
There are amazing church services in the evenings of Assembly.  They are dynamic, they are fast paced, they are really cool to be a part of, but more importantly, they are filled with the power of God as we hear His Word brought from one of our General Superintendents.  It is amazing and it really is something that you have to experience to fully appreciate.

There is also a huge service project that takes place leading up to General Assembly called "One Heart, Many Hands" (See the video below) and the work they accomplish is highlighted during one of the evening services.  It is always amazing to see just how much can be done when everyone bands together.  Hundreds (perhaps even thousands) of people will come early to participate in this amazing outreach.  

If you have the opportunity to come to General Assembly, I hope you will come and see all that God is doing in the life of the Church of the Nazarene.  And if you will not be attending, please pray for all those who are.  We appreciate it.  I'll share some highlights from the event next month.  

Until next week!