Report 7--Remeber Your Call

(Report from School of Congregational Development at Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, KS)

Last night's worship service was amazing. The celebrative music, the prayer time and communion, and most especially this service the message!! Bishop Jung of the Northern Illinois Annual Conference was preaching. He is a Korean by birth, child of God by adoption, United Methodist by profession, and proclaimer of God's word by calling. Though it was challenging to follow his broken English, the message was outstanding--all of it.

He described his struggle with the recent appointment as Bishop. He felt a vision to evangelize the Northern Illinois conference through church planting, but everyone kept telling him it wouldn't work. He prayed and prayed, and God still gave him the same vision. And still leaders in the church and conference said it couldn't be done. They gave him advice--just lay low for a while, get to know the people of the conference, and you'll see how our conference is.

It tore him up inside. And at one point he found himself in prayerful consternation, writhing in the pains of his heart, torn between two options. He fell down on his knees in prayer, sobbing in desperation for God's still small voice, a word of encouragement and hope. His prayerful posture eventually brought him to grasping for life the leg of his conference table. Had anyone walked in they would have assumed him an idiot. A bishop of the United Methodist Church weeping on the floor like a baby, holding on to a table leg in desperation? What came of it?

God gave him a vision for church planting! He set some goals he thought might be reached by 2020, and set out to accomplish them. At the present rate these goals will be met by 2010. God is good!

Bishop Jung's message echoed what I have heard from other bishops and leaders at this conference--Quit playing church!! Get out and MAKE DISCIPLES. Every one of our speakers possess a 'self-critical' stance toward the church (e.g. the loyalty to rigid and inhibiting structures of the UMC) matched by an amazing confidence in the power of God to use the UMC for making disciples of Jesus Christ. Have we lost confidence in the Holy Spirit?

I personally find this refreshing. Ten or fifteen years ago it would have been unheard of for a bishop to criticize his own organization. At the same time, ten or fifteen years ago there was not a great deal of confidence in the Lord. Sure, confidence in the UMC to become a great organization, but not confidence in God and his imperative to make disciples. There is a difference. And what a joy it is to see our denominational leaders negotiating the higher things for the sake of the kingdom.

Remember your call! It's not just a good sermon title. It is an invitation for all of us to grasp hold of the Lord's imperative to make disciples, to be on our knees in desperation, and to seek the fulfillment of God's promises!

Blessings in Christ,
JON