Energizing and Equipping Local Churches
in Making Disciples of Jesus Christ for the Transformation of the World
The Wilderness Way #10
As we move into the appointment season, I want to ask that readers of the Wilderness Way be in prayer for me and for other members of the Cabinet as we wrestle with appointments. With few retirements and some churches cutting salaries, finding the right match is difficult. We continue to strive to be guided by the Holy Spirit and the needs of the mission field as well as more conventional concerns. Furthermore, I want to publicly thank those who responded to our sharing of “clear openings.” (Wilderness Way #7) The feedback and interest has been both helpful and thought provoking.
Since coming to the Central Texas Conference, a great joy for me has been visiting churches across the conference. My “shepherd visits” have taken me into some 227 churches so far with another 100 or so to go. People have been wonderful. Churches are beautiful. I am seeing not just the physical plant but also the real “body of Christ” in all its glory. I am also encountering stories of struggle and pain as I visit. Like it or not, these are times of struggle and genuine change. They are also times of great opportunity and tremendous blessing if we are open to the movement of the Spirit.
I want to spend the next few Wilderness Ways holding up a mirror to the conference. Hopefully, we can look in the mirror together and learn from what we see. We are a church in the wilderness of changing times. This challenges all of us and simultaneously presents great opportunities. Here is some of what I hear the churches of the Central Texas Conference (and more specifically in this Wilderness Way article the Waco District) sharing and saying.
My first visits last fall were in the Waco District. I started in West where they shared strengths of being supportive and helpful, and involved in the community. Those themes were repeated often. Speegleville spoke of the family feel. Union Memorial talked about being close knit and having strong lay leadership. Larger churches tended to say the same thing. Woodway reported friendliness and being close knit as well. Crawford First talked about being “home” and welcoming. In fact, it was a rare church that did not report being friendly, welcoming and a place of home.
A second clear strength reported was community involvement and leadership. Sparks Memorial shared a local mission spirit. Likewise, Mexia spoke of being mission-minded. In fact, missional involvement was a towering strength in the Waco District. In one form or another, it was reflected upon in places like Meridian, Mart and Mosheim. In fact, some form of missional involvement was almost (not quite) universal.
Where the pain came was in the involvement or lack of involvement of younger generations. Many, many churches reported only having two or three generations. Comments were repeatedly made about the need to attract younger members. What stood out were the churches, of various sizes, but generally larger, who reported youth and children’s ministry as a strength. Among those, First Waco and Mexia reported strength in this area; so did Lorena and Mt. Zion with youth involvement.
At St. James someone said, “God has a reason for the church being here.” I believe that can and should be said for every church. The Waco District has a strength that is impressive. Strangely, that strength is often underappreciated. Many would say something like, “we’re just a small church” and then go on to report how God was at work in their midst. I can’t help but remember the motto of the great missionary evangelist William Carey. “Attempt great things for God; expect great things from God.”
In the wilderness of the Waco District, we are engaged missionally but often lost evangelistically. We love the warmth of our own campfire, but are timid in trekking along new trails. I thank God for the Waco District and my time spent in your midst! The Lord IS with you!