DE PONDERINGS

by Kevin Kessler, District Executive

I'm back at home from a wonderful few days at Annual Conference in beautiful San Diego, California. I had a great time at this national Church of the Brethren event. I was able to:

• connect with folks I see maybe no more frequently than once a year.
  
• enter into conversation with people to hear what was happening in their lives and in the congregations in which they participate.
  
• learn about the issues we are facing as a denomination and how we as the body of Christ are living into the joys and challenges these issues bring.
  
• learn about a district that is creatively doing ministry without any full-time ministers in any of its congregations.
  
• learn how a church planter in a neighboring district perceives the needs of young adults in our society and how he is helping to meet those needs.
  
• learn about an intercultural, inner-city Church of the Brethren congregation that is actively engaged in productive missional ministry.
  
• honor God through acts of corporate worship with brothers and sisters from across the United States representing an array of ethnic, racial, political and social distinctions.
  
• receive inspiration from prophetic preaching that invited me to examine my inner self and freed me to accept God's grace for my life.
  
• listen to a lecture about church history that made sense and helped me to understand history's implication on the emerging new trends in religious, social, political and other circles of our times.
  
• join in moments of fellowship with friends over lunch, or a bowl of ice cream, or at a table waiting for a meal.
  
• meet Brethren from other parts of the United States whose theological perspective, I assume, was much different than mine, yet I felt at ease in their presence as we shared in conversation with each other.
  
• gain new and creative perspectives on ways to be a faithful servant of Christ both in the church and to the world.
  
• accept the challenge to be a more faithful servant of Jesus Christ, lifting up and living the values of the One who came to serve, not to be served.
  
• receive Sabbath which was a welcome change of pace from the work that steadily vies for my time.

Without a doubt, attending Annual Conference is a major financial commitment. But the benefits, I believe, far outweigh the costs. I consider what I receive from Annual Conference to be priceless, a gift from God. It is a gift I receive not for the purpose of padding my own spiritual and religious bank account, but rather for building up my abilities and gifts to be a more faithful servant of Christ.

I hope as congregations build their budgets for 2010, that consideration will be given for including a line item allowing for pastors and delegates to attend Annual Conference. Count the cost. What value does attendance at Annual Conference have for your congregation, and those who attend, in comparison to the cost of not attending? Look at values not in dollars and cents, but in the return you'll receive on the investment of sending persons to this national event. Some investments, such as attendance at Annual Conference, have potential for perpetual growth. Go ahead! Invest!